Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans
by taylansmommy
Summary: Stephanie tries to leave, to give peace to those she loves, only to find herself in more trouble than she could have imagined. She should know by now that Ranger and the Merry Men would never let her get away that easy.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Stephanie's POV

I stood looking out the window as the last of my furniture was removed from the apartment. Luckily, a local shelter agreed to hall it out for me, and I didn't see any Rangeman vehicle in site, so I was pretty sure I was able to go about this final task undetected.

I signed the donation form and closed the door. My apartment was completely empty. I had packed the car last night in the cover of darkness. My mind has been made up for about two weeks now, but I had to let all the pieces fall into place. The only thing left in the apartment was Rex's cage and two letters on the counter. One addressed to Joe, one to Ranger. I would call my parents, Mary Lou and Lula when I got settled. But what I had to say to the men in my life, well I knew I couldn't do it over the phone. I needed distance. Life had been rough on me. But now I was ready to go. To start over.

Joe, I know wanted me to change, but not in a way I could live with. I knew that being with Joe would kill the part of me that felt truly alive. As the years went on I would start to hate him for that, and I loved him enough not to go down that road. I wanted him to find happiness. But I knew as long as I was here, he wouldn't move on to find that with someone else.

Ranger on the other hand, didn't want me to change; but there was still the question of if he really wanted me at all. Being around him had risked the lives of him and his men, cost him many vehicles and countless amounts of money, but the worst thing I've done to him was make him change his life. I can't help but feel like that call that Connie made to him about me two years ago was the worst thing that could have happened to him. I wanted him to go back to a simple life. One in which I wasn't mucking up his Zen. But truth be known, I loved him. I was in love with him. He occupied my thoughts, had a starring role in my dreams and kept my heart beating. How I would go one without him? I had no idea, but I had to try.

I made one final check through my bedroom, stopped for a moment in the kitchen before quickly grabbing Rex and practically running for my car. I had already done a sweep of my belonging and car for any tracers and I had placed all ten I could find under the dumpster in the parking lot. I put Rex in the passenger seat and fastened the seatbelt around him. I looked at the clock on my dashboard and it read 8:45 am. After one final look up to the fire escape and my windows, I put the car in gear and quickly made my way out of the parking lot. I took as many side streets as possible, trying to avoid detection on my way to Route 1. Once on Route 1 I was going to head south on the 95 all the way to Jacksonville. Then take the 10 west to New Orleans. Diesel had mentioned in passing last time he came for a "visit" that I could do skip tracing there pretty easily; that there was a lot of money to be made. I had already gotten false IDs. My car, which I bought yesterday in New York, was registered to Stephanie Walsh. I probably should have changed my first name too, but when you've been called something for over thirty years you kind of get used to it.

So now we drove. I shed a tear as the last of the familiarity of Trenton, blurred past my windows. I looked at Rex, who only had his butt visible hanging out of the soup can. "It will be fine. We will be fine." As I said the words my heart was protesting. Would I be fine without him? I think what hurt me more, was I knew he would be fine without me.

As we past the "Thank you for Visiting Trenton" sign, I could no longer hold back the tears. And while I've missed umpteenth Sunday services, that doesn't mean I'm not a praying woman. "God, watch over him. Please. I love him. Help me do what is best for all of us. Help me to be strong. Keep him safe." I let out a hard sob and tried to maintain control of the car. Through tearing vision, I saw the turn off for the 95 and as I took it I whispered, "I love you Ranger."

Ranger's POV

I've had a weird feeling all morning; something just wasn't right. I kept checking to make sure I had my wallet, keys, that I wasn't missing an appointment, but everything seemed in order. I had been in my office doing paperwork since about 8:00. I looked at the clock on the wall. 8:50. Time just seemed to be dragging too. I couldn't remember if Steph was coming in this morning or not. I hoped so. I hadn't seen her in about three days and the last time I did, she seemed kind of distant. She was probably just having problems with the Cop again.

I walked out to the monitor bay where Lester and Bobby were making visual rounds of all the accounts. I stepped over to the black monitor to Lester's left. I didn't want the guys to know I was missing Steph. Show no weakness. Truth be told I really only had four weaknesses in my life; Julie, my daughter, my family, my men and Stephanie Plum. The problem was Steph was now at the top of that list. When I wasn't with her, something felt off.

I pulled up Steph's tracers and all showed up at her apartment. I chuckled to myself. Well if she was coming in today, she was going to be late. Lester looked over at me from the corner of his eye.

"Trouble with Bomber?" Lester had a nervousness in his voice. All my men thought of Steph as a sister. They would have thought of her as more than that if they weren't scared shitless of me. It was unspoken, to me at least, but they knew what she meant to me. And they knew what I would do for her; they had all seen it firsthand.

"No. I just couldn't remember if she was coming in today or not." I flipped open my cell phone and hit Steph's number on my speed dial.

_You have reached a number that has been disconnected or is no longer in service._ I ended the call and checked the number. I knew that she had been doing well money wise. She had been working overtime here. And if she needed money, I would like to think she would ask for help.

I dialed her cell phone. _The number you have dialed is no longer in service. _I shut my phone and looked at it. Bobby and Lester had both turned to look at me now, concern and curiosity covering their faces.

"Did Stephanie change her contact numbers?" I watched as Bobby brought up her personnel record.

"No. They are the same in the computer. What's going on?" Bobby looked up at me and then started to type more into the computer. "We still have those two lipstick cameras in place at her apartment. Do you want me to access them?"

She would be beyond pissed I invaded her privacy that way again. She had made that known to me, but if I could see she was home, then I would go over and find out what was going on. "Go ahead."

The first camera gave a view of her living room. When it came on the screen, there was nothing. All her furniture was gone, it was empty. Bobby quickly punched in the second camera which gave a view of her kitchen. Again, empty, except there was something on the counter.

"Zoom in to counter." I barked at Bobby. When I saw the Cop and my names on each of the envelopes, I finally figured out what I had been missing. As I ran to the elevator, followed by Lester and Bobby, I realized what I had lost today. What was missing? Babe was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Ranger POV

"Tank, put Hal on the monitors and meet me at Stephanie's apartment." I screamed into the phone and almost broke it ending the call. When the elevator doors opened, I ran for my Porsche, while Lester and Bobby took one of the SUVs. I stopped quickly at the bond office. Maybe Connie had some answers, and I didn't want to waste any time. Hopefully Steph didn't have too much of a head start.

I double parked and Lester and Bobby pulled up behind me. I jumped out of the car and ran into the office. The look on Connie and Lula's faces told me that they knew something and I could tell that they were debating on telling me the information before I even entered the building.

As I threw the door open and stormed in, Connie stood and put her hands up. "Ranger, I don't know where she went, I just know she's gone. There was message on the answering machine this morning."

I quickly looked at Lula, but she was crying. I imagined that Stephanie had given her as much warning as me.

"Play the message." I was trying to maintain calm, but with each passing second, it was getting more and more difficult.

Connie took a step back. "I'm not sure she would want me to do that. I think it would just upset you more to hear it, and it won't tell you anything."

I slammed my fist down on the desk and leaned over towards her. "Connie, play the fucking message." I think that was the first time I had ever used foul language around her, and she started to shake. She reached behind her and pushed the play button on the machine.

What I hadn't anticipated was how much it would hurt to just hear her voice. _Connie, its Stephanie. I am so sorry for the short notice, but I am leaving_. _I seem to be causing more hurt and trouble for those I love than I am worth. Tell Vinnie thank you for giving me a chance. Tell Lula I'll call her soon. Take care of yourself, and tell Ranger….._her voice cracked and I could hear the pain she was trying to hide. _If you would, tell Ranger I'll miss him. Try to keep him safe for me. I know you will do a better job than I ever did. Love you guys. Take care. Bye._

The beep of the end of the message made me jump. Without saying a word, I ran back out the door and got into my car, speeding through the back streets to Steph's apartment. When I got there, Tank was waiting by dumpster. I got out of the car and quickly closed the distance between us.

"She found every tracer we hid. All ten are here. She left them under the dumpster." He held his hand out and there they all set. Worthless pieces of metal and wire shit. I wanted to break something, but I had to not lose myself here. I walked into her building and took the stairs two at a time, followed by Lester, Tank and Bobby. I tried her door and it was open. I took my gun out and walked through the apartment.

There was nothing here. Not even a sign of her anywhere, yet I saw her everywhere. As I checked the bathroom, I saw her handcuffed to that damn shower curtain rod. In the bedroom, I was flooded with memories of our one night together, and all the nights I would come and check on her without her ever knowing. I could still smell her here. I walked into the kitchen and looked at the envelopes. I picked up the one addressed to Morelli and handed it to Tank.

"Take this to him. Let him know we've got this and to not get in our way." Tank nodded his head and headed towards his car.

I turned my letter over and over in my hands. Lester and Bobby silently left the room; all I heard was the door close behind then. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, then slowly opened the envelope. There were smudges on the paper and I could tell she had been crying when she wrote it. I tried to center myself. I wanted to read this as a clue, not as what it was meant to be; a goodbye. One more deep breath and I began.

_Dear Ranger,_

_By the time you get this letter, I will be on my way to a new life. This decision has not been an easy one to make. While I am leaving great friends and my family behind, the main thing that is making this so difficult for me is leaving you. _

_I have never been able to tell you what you mean to me. I was always afraid of pushing you away. I wanted you in my life, any way that I could have you. So I thought it was better to just keep my mouth shut and steal whatever moments I could have with you. But I was being selfish. I realize that now. You changed your whole life for me. You put your life in danger for me. That is not fair to you. It is not fair to your men. I want you to have the life that will make you happy. I can't stand the fact that I have done damage to the life you have worked so hard to build. _

_I decided I would leave before having me as burden in your life makes you hate me. Losing you that way would kill me. _

_I love you Ranger. And while it may seem that I have taken everything with me, that is not true. I leave my heart with you. Always. _

_Stay safe and have a good and long life. I am hoping to disappear while I still have people who think fondly of me and before I screw up anyone else's life more than I already have. _

_I will love you forever and a day Carlos. _

_Stephanie_

I let the letter slip out of my hand as I read her name. While to her it seemed like she had complicated my life, what she didn't realize is that I had no life until I got that call from Connie. That first meeting I had with her, it made me start to see colors in my black and white world. I refuse to let her make this decision for me. I refuse to let her take my colors away. I would find her. I had the money, I had the resources and I had the contacts. She may have been a pain in the ass at times, but she was my pain in the ass and I loved her. She was my peace. In a world where by all rights a man like me should find no peace, she provided that. I was not going to lose it. I was not going to lose her.

I reached down and picked up the letter. I folded it, put it back in the envelope and placed it in my back pocket. I stopped before I left the apartment. I turned and finally saw it for what it was; a lifeless, empty set of rooms. Until I found Stephanie and had her in my arms, that is what I would be. God I hope I'm as good at this finding people shit as I claim to be. It was never as important as right now to be able to walk the walk.

I quickly made my way to the parking lot and nodded at Lester and Bobby. "Get back to the office. We've got work to do", the most important work of my life.

Stephanie's POV

Rex and I had traveled three hundred miles already. The time was passing quickly and I was enjoying the unfamiliar scenery. I had stocked the car with snacks and sodas. I didn't want to have to make a lot of stops. And I didn't know if I could find TastyKakes in New Orleans.

I started to let my mind wander. I began to wonder who knew I was missing. Connie would know, since I left her a message. I figured, Lula and Vinnie would know because of that, and then word would start to trickle out. Ranger would probably know before Joe, because Lula would call Tank.

There was a selfish part of me that hoped Ranger would find me. That he loved me enough that he didn't want to lose me. But was that right of me to wish that? Wasn't it evil of me to pray he is masochistic enough to want to be with me? But besides flirting, he really had never given an indication that what he felt for me was the kind of love you would go to that much trouble to keep.

I stopped at a rest stop and used the facilities and stretched my legs. I let my curiosity get the best of me and decided to call Lula from the payphone. I was shaking as I dialed the number. I think I was more afraid of a lack of a reaction than an overreaction.

"Hello" Lula sounded angry and I almost hung up, but she deserved more from me than that.

"Lula?" I was trying to hide the shaking in my voice.

"White girl, where the hell are you? You don't just take off like that. Shit girl do you know what you've done?" Crap, what did I do? Well I know that I left, but was there more?

"Lula, is Vinnie really pissed off?" I had kind of left him in a lurch.

"Fuck the weasel, you left us to deal with one pissed off Batman. He came in here and just about broke Connie's desk in two. Now he's taking all his anger out on his guys. Poor Tankie says that he's never seen him like this before. He had to cancel his dates with me until further notice." She sounded a little more animated, but I knew that too many canceled dates between her and Tank, Ranger would have his hands full.

"Lula, I am fine. Tell him that please. His life will be better now that I'm gone. All of your lives will be better now that I am hundreds of miles away." I figured I had better go, just in case Ranger was tapping Lula's phone. "Lula, I will call again soon. Please try to calm him down if you can and tell him what I said. Enjoy a better life without me. I love you all. Talk to you soon."

"Wait, Steph..." But I hung up before she could finish. I had heard a clicking sound and my spidey senses told me that she was probably setting in Rangeman, waiting for me to call so they could get a bearing on me. I just hope I didn't give them anything to work with.

I got back in the car and started back towards my destination. I guess this was the reaction that I secretly wished for, but it confused the hell out of me. Was his pride that strong? I can't imagine it is from love that he was reacting this way. No one can control that strong of a love for someone when they are together, and with the one exception, he had never expressed that love for me.

I was starting to get a little tired, so I started to search the radio stations. Suddenly I felt like a knife stabbed me in the heart when I heard the start of a very familiar song and I had to wonder if God was trying to tell me something, or if he was finally getting payback for all those Sundays I'd slept in. I listen and sang along and let the tear flow

_Babe I'm leaving _

_I must be on my way_

_The time is drawing near_

_My train is going_

_I see it in your eyes_

_The Love, The Need, Your Tears._

_But I'll be lonely without you_

_And I'll need your love to see me through_

_So please believe me_

_My heart is in your hands_

_I'll be missing you._

'_Cause you know it's you Babe_

_Whenever I get weary and I've had enough_

_Feel like giving up_

_You know it's you Babe_

_Giving me the courage and the strength I need_

_Please believe that it's true_

_Babe, I love you_

_Babe, I'm leaving_

_I'll say it once again_

_And somehow try to smile_

_I know the feeling we're trying to forget_

_If only for a while_

'_Cause I'll be lonely without you_

_And I'll need your love to see me through_

_Please believe me_

_My heart is in your hands_

'_Cause I'll be missing you_

_Babe, I love you._

_(Babe- by Styx)_

As the song ended I was crying so hard I couldn't get the last words out. I decided at that moment, I would put my life in the hands of fate. I had my plan and if he found me, I wouldn't hide from him. If he loved me enough, and if this was what was meant to me, I would be waiting. And if he gives up, then I will survive and exist. That is all I am expecting for my new life, because without Ranger, my life will really be nothing but existing.


	3. Chapter 3

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I hope you enjoy this chapter. It will give a back story as to what brought us to this point. Thank you for all of your comments. I am really enjoying writing and the more I do it, the more I want to develop my own characters that are floating around in my head. Thank you again!

Chapter 3

Stephanie POV

Six hundred miles down. The radio is not being cooperative, so I had turned it off about an hour ago. Why is it when you are sad, all they do is play stupid, depressing love songs? What I needed was empowerment songs, but what I kept getting was "I Will Always Love You". The headlights dancing across the wet pavement seem to be drawing me back to why I was here in the first place. If I had just stayed at my desk that day I probably would be home right now. Alone, but home. Oh who am I kidding? I probably would be in the shower trying to remove whatever crap I had rolled around in that day, but that's beside the point.

It was a typical Wednesday. I had been working extra hours at Rangeman because Vinnie had been low on skips. The background checks had been piling up so I got there early to try to get ahead for the day. Still, even though I set my bag on my desk at 8:00 am, there was a priority file waiting for me. A yellow sticky note alerted me that it was to be moved to the top of my to do list.

_Babe_

_Need it yesterday_

_R_

Even in written communication, he is not a man of many words. I went to the break room and got a cup of coffee and quickly went to my desk, logged in and started my search. The office was unusually quiet, and there was a feeling of claustrophobia that normally didn't exist here. But something was up, and I was debating on whether to you my feminine persuasion to get information. But in the end that wasn't needed. Lester walked by just then and stuck his head into my cubicle.

"What are you doing here so early Beautiful? Of all days to be early, your timing is impeccable as always." He was whispering, but there was amusement in his voice.

I turned to look at him, knowing he always told me more than he should. "What's going on? It feels like I working at Stiva's today. I expect a viewing to begin any minute."

Lester knelt down in front of my chair. "Numbers man is here. If I was you, I would stay away from Ranger. Whenever the accountants make an appearance, someone seems to get fired. But not in Ranger's normal warm and fuzzy way. I'm talking off with their heads. Even the Number Man is looking nervous today." Lester patted me on the shoulder and quickly walked back to the monitors.

Well that was all I needed to hear. I knew that I had better finish this file he requested a quickly as possible. By 9:00, I was getting the last pages from the printer when the elevator opened and Ranger emerged. His hair was still wet, and I could tell he had spent the morning in the gym. Probably getting a head start on relieving the stress he knew was coming today. He didn't notice me at the printer; he just went straight into his office.

It took me about fifteen minutes to organize the file and I slowly approached Ranger's office. I didn't want to disturb him, but I knew he was waiting for this information. His office door wasn't closed completely and I could tell that the "Number Man" and Ranger were in the middle of something. I was just going to wait until there was a break and then I'd knock and pass the file over. I was about to cross to the monitor bay and talk to Lester when I realized they were talking about me.

"You are bleeding money Mr. Manoso. I've noticed that your entertainment budget has more than quadrupled in the past year. Plus with the increases in your insurance premiums, you will need to drastically increase your client base, or cut out the reason for your increased spending." There was no emotion in his voice. He just stated it very matter of fact.

I heard Ranger sigh. "You know that is not an option Stan. We've already talked about this. I feel like I'm responsible for her. I got her into all this mess." I heard his chair squeak as he leaned back. "I'll just start finding some more clients and try to keep her in the office more. Hopefully that can slow down the bleeding."

"If this woman is so important to you, marry her and then she would be a complete write off. It would solve a lot of your problems."

Ranger sighed again and I could hear the chair squeak as he returned it to its normal position. "New subject Stan. We have already gone over this before and my marital status is not going to change. Now give me the options, the realistic options, that is, for getting us back in the black."

I didn't want to hear anymore. I knew I shouldn't have been eavesdropping, but I couldn't help it. I walked back to my cubical and put my head on my desk. I couldn't believe that I was not only constantly putting Ranger and the Merry Men's lives in danger, but I was jeopardizing their livelihood too. I don't know how long I sat like that, but someone behind me cleared his throat and I looked up to see a strange man standing behind me.

He looked a lot like a rat. He was tall and very thin with slick back black hair. He had small eyes hidden behind thin wire framed glasses. They were perched on a long, pointy nose that seemed too big for his face. He was wearing a very expensive suit, and he was very well groomed. I smiled at him as I raised my head, but part of me wanted to shoo him out of my workspace with a broom.

"Miss Plum? Allow me to introduce myself. I am Stanley Watkins. I am Mr. Manoso's accountant." He extended his hand and I shook it. You could tell that this guy hit books instead of people for a living. His hands were soft and his grip was weak.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Watkins. Is there something I can help you with?" I turned my chair to face him and he stepped closer to me, leaning down in order to make an attempt to keep our conversation quiet.

"Miss Plum, I couldn't help but notice you outside Mr. Manoso's door while we were speaking." I tried to interrupt and defend myself, but he put his finger to my lips to stop me. "If you are here for a meal ticket, I've got your number missy. I will figure out a way to get you gone soon enough. But if you truly do love him, as I expect you do, you will remove yourself from his business, if not his life. You are singlehandedly bringing down everything he has worked for. This obligation he feels for you will destroy this business and all that depend on it. Do you understand what I am saying to you?" He stood and looked down at me over his glasses.

I felt the tears well up in me. I just nodded my head and looked at the floor. At that moment, I knew I had to leave. I loved him too much to let him destroy his life. All the pain, stress and complication I had inflicted on Ranger, Joe, my friends and family came crashing down on me in that instant. And I knew I had to remove myself from their lives. I knew that was my only option.

I looked back up at Mr. Watkins and he smiled slightly down at me. "It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Plum." He then quickly turned and sprinted towards the elevator.

I took deep breaths because I knew that I had to have a plan and if I let my emotions spill out here, Ranger would have had locked me up and thrown away the key until he could change my mind. I quickly grabbed my bag and turned off my computer. I took the file Ranger had been waiting for to the monitor station.

Lester looked up at me, concern suddenly covering his face. "You ok Beautiful? You look like you aren't feeling so good."

I smiled weakly at time. "I have one hell of a headache Lester. I'm going to go home and lay down for awhile. Could you do me a favor and give this to Ranger when he comes out? He's waiting for it." I handed him the file and as he took it from me, he quickly grabbed my hand.

"You sure it's just a headache?" Lester knew me almost as well as Ranger by this point. We had been working a lot of skips together and had become good friend.

"Positive." I slid my hand out of his and walked towards the elevator. I looked back over my shoulder at him as I pushed the button. He was standing, debating on pursuing his questioning further. "I'll be fine. I'll see you tomorrow." Just then the door opened and I made a hasty retreat into the elevator. I took deep breaths and tried to keep my tears hidden until I was out of the parking lot. Well at least I made it to the car. Hopefully they could see in there with the cameras.

As I pulled out of Rangeman's parking garage, I had given myself a three week time frame. I had three weeks to figure out how to remove myself from Ranger's life in a way that would cause the least amount of damage.

The sound of a horn brought me back to reality. I was getting too tired and I had crossed the yellow line. The glow of a Motel 6 in the distance was like a mirage. I needed a goodnights sleep to clear my head and strengthen my resolve.

Ranger POV

"Did you get it?" I looked over at Bobby as soon as Lula hung up the phone. She had been camped out here, waiting for Stephanie to call so we could figure out which direction she went. Steph hadn't stayed on the line long enough, I know, for us to get a specific location, but we might be able to get the direction she is headed at least.

"All we got was West Virginia." Bobby was still trying to narrow the grid, but he kept shaking his head.

"Well at least we know for the time being she is heading south. We'll keep the tracer on your phone Lula. Hopefully she will call again in the next day and we can get a better idea of where she is headed." Tank tried to comfort Lula. She had started to cry again as soon as the call ended.

For the life of me, I couldn't figure out what had brought about Babe leaving. The past three weeks or so, she had seemed distant, but I knew that she and Morelli were in one of their transition phases. But it had to be more than that. She alluded in her note that she was ruining my life. Nothing had happened for months to get any of us hurt. Not immediate danger was present. I couldn't wrap my head around this sudden change.

Lester was setting at the monitor station with his head in his hands. I sat down next to him and thought maybe if we talked this out, we could figure what the catalyst to Steph leaving had been.

"Santos, did she say anything to you? Did you notice something?" I had a feeling he was trying to come up with his own answer to this riddle.

He nodded his head and looked at me. "The day that Watkins was here, she came in early. After about an hour and a half, she came up to the monitoring station and asked me to give you a file you had been waiting for. She didn't look good, but she said she had a headache and was going home to sleep. Since then she has been distant. I had asked her a few times what was wrong and she just said she had a lot on her mind." Lester sat up straight in his chair. "I can't help but think that something happened that day to bring this about."

Looking back over the past few weeks I could see now how she seemed distant. But I hadn't seen her that day. I remember when Lester gave me the file, thinking it was weird that she hadn't come by to see me. "Pull the office surveillance for that day. Maybe we can figure this out." Lester started to search through the surveillance video and we saw her car enter the parking lot. She smiled up to the camera in the elevator and gave her usual wave. We switched camera views to watch her exit the elevator and head to her desk. We changed to the camera in there cubical. I watched as she picked up the file I had laid on her desk the night before and put it down and head out of the cubical. We followed her into the break room and back to her desk. She started to work then I saw Lester enter her cubical.

"I was just warning her to steer clear of you because the Number Man was in the building and you always get cranky when he's here." I didn't take my eyes off the screen, but I nodded in acknowledgement while I watch Steph and Lester exchange laughs. She went back to work and then went the printer. She was distracted by something and was looking at the elevator. I pulled up that feed and it was me coming onto five and heading to my office. I hadn't even noticed her.

She then went back to her desk. She stayed there, organizing the file and walked to my office. She went to knock, but stopped. I noticed that the door to my office wasn't closed all the way. She started to move, but then came back and pressed herself against wall, listening. I noticed her expression darken and she quickly made her way back to her desk. She put her head on her desk, and I started racking my brain about what she could have heard.

Suddenly Watkins appeared in her cubicle. "Lester do you have audio on this camera?"

He laughed, "It involved Bomber, what do you think?" With a few more key strokes, the picture was full screen and we heard Watkins clear his throat.

"Miss Plum? Allow me to introduce myself. I am Stanley Watkins. I am Mr. Manoso's accountant."

Steph was looking up at him and then shook his hand, giving him a polite smile, but with none of her usual warmth.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Watkins. Is there something I can help you with?" Steph turned her chair to face him and he leaned down close to her lowering his voice. Lester and I both leaned into the monitor, instincts taking over.

"Miss Plum, I couldn't help but notice you outside Mr. Manoso's door while we were speaking." Steph tried to talk, but he put his finger to her mouth. Ok, he's fired. "If you are here for a meal ticket, I've got your number missy. I will figure out a way to get you gone soon enough. But if you truly do love him, as I expect you do, you will remove yourself from his business, if not his life. You are singlehandedly bringing down everything he has worked for. This obligation he feels for you will destroy this business and all that depend on it. Do you understand what I am saying to you?" As I listen to what he was saying to her, the rage I was feeling was turning everything red. Now not only was he fired, but he was a dead man. I saw Lester out of the corner of my eye clenching his fists. Killing Watkins might just end up being a reward for my men instead of an order.

My heart broke as I saw Steph look to the floor and nod her head in acknowledgment of what Watkins had said.

"It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Plum." And with that, the chicken shit practically ran for the elevator. He had thrown one hell of a grenade and then didn't even have the balls to deal with the aftermath.

I watched as Steph tried to compose herself. We turned off the monitors as she started to talk to Lester. We finally knew why she had left.

I turned to Lester and he was looking at the ceiling. He looked back to me and the pain in his eyes was palpable. "I'm sorry Ranger. I knew there was something wrong with her. I should have pushed for an answer. I could have prevented all of this."

I grabbed his shoulder. Santos was one of my best friends. I knew how much he cared for Steph. None of the blame of this situation fell to him. "This is not your fault. We now know where it lies." I stood and looked down at him. "Get Watkins on the phone and tell him to meet me here immediately to discuss Miss Plum's future in the company."

Lester picked up the phone and smiled. "Tell him we'll be waiting for him on three."


	4. Chapter 4

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Sorry about the geography error. I live in Oregon and was trying to get distances from a map online. I have a hard enough time finding my way around here. Well as long as Stephanie ends up in New Orleans, I'll be happy. Hope you all like the upcoming chapters. Just be prepared. Watkins isn't be big baddy in the story. Someone from Ranger's past will be showing up soon with a score to settle. Thank you for all your comments.

Chapter 4

Ranger POV

When Watkins entered the gym, he was carrying his briefcase and wearing a satisfied grin on his face. I think he came to the conclusion on his own that I had decided to let Steph go. He couldn't have been farther from the truth.

His face fell as he was greeted by me standing on the edge of the sparing mat. As soon as he came to stand in front of me, any chance for him making a speeding retreat was blocked by Tank, Lester and Bobby. The look on his face was almost enough to make me take pity on him. Almost.

"Is there a problem Mr. Manoso? I thought we were meeting about Miss Plum and her continued employment? I am confused as to why we are meeting here." Watkins gave a nervous laugh that made him sound like a cross between a hyena and a thirteen year old girl.

I crossed the mat to close the distance front of him and Lester came up behind him. "This meeting is regarding Miss Plum, Stan. But not about her employment. It is regarding the fact that you took liberties and used power you didn't have." Lester was looming over the back of Watkins now and the rage was seething through him. Watkins was starting to shake and I knew that this wasn't going to take anytime at all.

"Mr. Manoso, I don't understand what you are talking about. I have never even seen Miss Plum in more than passing. I don't think I've said more than three words to her." He lied so easily, it made me start to wonder what else he had lied about over the years. Mental note, get an independent audit of my finances.

"Is that the answer you are sticking with Watkins?" Lester whispered in his ear. Watkins turned to look at him and then looked back to me as if I would help him.

"Are you aware Stan that we have cameras set up all over this building?" I laughed. "Of course you are you wrote the check for the equipment. Well as you have brought to my attention numerous times over the past two years, I send an unusual amount of money on Steph. Do you really think we wouldn't have her work stationed covered and wired for sound?" Watkins looked at the floor and started to shrink in stature as I could see his legs were starting to give out on him.

"You want to change your answer?" Bobby asked from his left.

"Last chance." Tank said from his right.

The sound of liquid hitting the mat made us all take a step back from Watkins. The chicken shit pissed his pants. He looked down at his pants and started to cry. "Please Mr. Manoso. Don't hurt me. I will do whatever you want. I can give you information. I know where some of your money has been headed. I swear I didn't take it, but I've been looking the other way while some of the senior partners have been taking liberties." He looked up at me and I figured that pain we inflicted on him here would be too good for him. I bet he would make some big guy named Bubba a great girlfriend in prison. But I wanted to at least get one punch in. And that pointy nose of his was too big of a target to resist. Without any warning I punched him in the nose. There was a loud crunch and Watkins fell flat on his back in the puddle he had made a minute earlier. He was rolling around on the ground and sobbing.

I crouched down beside his head and said, "By the way. You're fired." I stood and looked at Tank. "Detain him, get the Intel we need about my missing funds. Oh and burn the mat."

I walked to the stairs and took them two at a time to five. Time to shake some bushes. I knew Steph was heading south for the time being, but it was getting late. I crossed to the monitor station. Hal was laughing at the scene in the gym. Bobby, Tank and Lester were playing rock, paper, scissors to see who got the privilege of dealing with Watkins and the Mat.

"Any more activity on Lula's phone?" I asked. I figured Steph wouldn't call again tonight, but something about Babe brought out the optimist in me. Hal shook his head and looked back at the bank of monitors, getting back to work. "I'll be on seven if there is anything." I walked over to the elevator and reluctantly made my way to my apartment.

Those brief periods of cohabitation I shared with Steph made my apartment seem emptier than it had before. I spent a lot of time on five. It seems too quiet here now, but I need some solitude to be able to fall apart in private. I am not normally a praying man, but when I got into the shower and slid down the wall, letting the hot water run over me, I said a silent prayer for God to watch over Babe. I prayed that I could close the distance between us soon and that I could find her safe. I prayed for a future I had been afraid to want. But damn it, I wanted it. It is amazing how fears seem to vanish when you are faced with the realization that if you continue to hide behind it, you could lose someone a precious as Steph. "Babe." As the word slip out of my mouth, my resolve crumbled and for the first time in as long as I can remember, I cried.

The next week passed slowly. There was no word from Steph and every lead we followed came to a dead end. I knew that she would call eventually. Her curiosity was too strong for her not to.

I was setting in my office finishing up my paperwork, but my mind was on the search, when there was a knock on my door.

"Enter." I looked up as Tank came in and quickly closed the door behind him. I knew it was bad news by the look on his face. "What?" Oh God, no.

"No it is nothing about Steph, but it is bad new all the same. Alverez is back in circulation. Apparently his mission ended and he popped back up on our monthly sweep. He has been state side for three weeks now." Before I could stop myself, my fist came down full force on my desk.

"This is the last thing I need now. Shit." Normally I would just batten down the hatches, but the one person that I needed to keep safe; I had no idea where she was.

Antonio Alverez was a former member of my unit way back when. He started at the same time as the rest of my core group and me, and we all moved up together. Ten years ago, we were stationed in Honduras, ordered to take out a drug cartel. Alverez was undercover doing Intel. During that time he fell in love with a woman named Maria. She was the daughter of one of our targets. My orders were clear. Take out the targets. Alverez informed us of a meeting that would be taking place at a beach compound in Trujillo. I had my snipers in place. Three targets, three snipers. It was Alverez's job to give us the signal when all three targets were on their way to the ocean balcony. Once we saw the signal, and all three targets were in site, they were to be eliminated. What I hadn't anticipated was that Maria would be at the meeting too. Alverez gave the signal, I watched and got confirmation from the snipers that they had clear shots and gave the order. However, Maria stepped into the shot at the last minute. She was killed instantly. Alverez blamed me for her death and vowed the day would come when I would feel the pain he felt. Immediately following that mission he had volunteered for deep undercover black ops.

Since starting Rangeman, we've done a search every month to see if he was back in circulation. One of the many enemies I keep tabs on. Since meeting Steph though, I have been extra cautious when it comes to Alverez. This is the first time ever in my life that he would have a target for his revenge.

"Where is he?" I was hoping he was here in Trenton. Better here where Steph wasn't.

"New Orleans. He just got a job doing some skip tracing and private investigating. Do you want me to send someone down to do recon?" I didn't want to pull anyone off the search for Steph, but something in my gut told me to cover this unexpected opportunity that seemed to materialize out of nowhere after all these years.

"Send Lester. Tell him to keep his distance and not to engage. Report any activity that might be relevant to my interests."

I closed my eyes, hoping for a miracle.

Stephanie POV

I made it to New Orleans in three days. Diesel and I had made a deal when I called him for help. I would continue to help him out when he needed me, no questions asked, if he could help me secure a new identity, a job and a place to live. He delivered my new ID's the same day I called, and then a week later called and told me who my new employer was.

Bucky Harris had been in the bond business for thirty years. Apparently he owed Diesel a favor, and employing me settled his debt in full. So Stephanie Walsh was the newest employee of the Harris Agency, no questions asked. The day before I left, I found an address and a set of keys left for me on my kitchen counter.

I got into New Orleans at 11:30 am and quickly found my new home. I was pleased to find that Diesel had hooked me up. I was now residing in a large loft apartment in the French Quarter. It was fully furnished and the fridge was stocked.

There was a note on the dining room table.

_Hope you enjoy the new digs. Remember, paybacks are a BITCH!_

_Diesel._

I laughed and quickly brought my things up from the car. I went out and stood on a small balcony that opened off the French doors in the main living area. I turned and looked back into the apartment. It was open and light. The dark wood floors made it seem warm, and the three large ceiling fans spaced throughout the open space gave it a tropical feel. The only room separate from this open space was the bathroom. But I really loved it. Diesel had put all the essential furniture in all the right places. Under me was a bakery. The smell of fried dough came drifting through the windows. This place could be mistaken for Heaven. The only thing missing was Ranger.

I turned back to look at my view. Directly across the street was a beauty parlor. I figured I might as well get my transformation finished. I was expected to report to work tomorrow morning and I need to become Stephanie Walsh. Diesel had had fun with Photoshop on my ID's. Now I had to get my hair straightened and dyed black. I swear that man has one sick sense of humor.

I didn't get back to my apartment until after five. But my transformation was done. I was now officially Stephanie Walsh.

I quickly finished unpacking and went to bed early. I slept like the dead and when my alarm went off at six, I was confused by my strange surroundings. I was even more confused by the stranger that looked back at me in the mirror. I quickly showered and put on my makeup. My hair was even more difficult now than before. I had to straighten it now. The chemical straightener only took care of so much. I dressed in my nicest pair of jeans, and button down white shirt and black blazer. I put on a really cute pair of cowboy boots I had found in a truck stop on my drive down. I stopped at the bakery under me and had a beignet and a cup of coffee. They weren't Boston Creams, but they would do.

Bucky's office was four blocks way, so in the spirit of leaving the Jersey Girl behind me, I walked to work. The store front actually reminded me a lot of Vinnie's office, and I instantly felt at home. But instead of a short, busty Italian with big hair, I was greeted by a short, fat, bald man with a bad comb over.

"You must be Stephanie. I'm Bucky. Diesel tells me good things about you." He extended his hand and I shook it. "Of course coming from Diesel, you never can tell if that is a good thing or not." We both laughed and he motioned for me to set in the ragged club chair in front of his desk.

"Diesel tells me you have been unusually busy lately." I was trying to keep the focus off of me. Then again, Bucky seemed like a man who didn't ask too many questions.

Bucky took a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped his forehead. "Yeah and I lost all my agents at once. Luckily I got lucky last week and hired someone who is probably the most competent employee I've ever had. Ex military. I'm going to have you two work together for awhile until you both become more familiar with the area."

Just then the bell on the front door rang. I did a double take and almost started to cry. Standing in the doorway, dressed all in black was a man that could have easily been one of the Merry Men. He stood about six feet two, was obviously of Latin heritage and had edge to his eyes that made Tank seem like a basset hound. I took a deep breath to settle myself. This man standing in front of me was a stranger. I had no reason to believe he was looking for me, or knew Ranger. The military is a big place. I am sure that don't all know each other. Besides even if they did, there would be no reason for him to know who the hell I was.

"There he is." Bucky stood and walked over to the man in the door. "Tony Alverez, this is Stephanie Walsh. You two will be partnered up for awhile."

I stood and took the hand that Tony offered. He smiled, but something about his eyes made the smile look menacing. "You look so familiar to me. Have we met before?"

I gave a nervous laugh. "I don't believe so. I think I would remember." My spidey senses were sending alarms off all over the place.

Tony still hadn't released my hand. "Well it's nice to meet you, Stephanie. Walsh, was it?"


	5. Chapter 5

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich, with the exception of Watkins and Alverez. Thank you all for your comments. Won't be long now for Ranger and Steph. But as we all know, their road is never a straight line.

Chapter 5

Ranger POV

Lester left two days ago and no sign of Alverez. There were five bond agencies in New Orleans, and he had already staked out three of them. No sign of him at any of those offices. He was going to check out the other two today.

And more importantly, there was no sign of Steph. She hadn't made any phone calls, and the only lead we had was her car was found at a used lot here in Trenton. That meant she had bought a vehicle under an assumed name right before she left. Christ, she had been hanging out with me too long. I was starting to rub off on her.

We still had Watkins in one of the cells in the basement. He was slow to give up information. But with the slightest persuasion, he would sing. The problem was he would only give us little snippets of information. I had finally had enough and told Tank to go old school on him today and be done. Slow and steady was bound to finally win the race this time.

I was on the phone with the Miami office when Tank came barreling into my office without even knocking. In the fifteen years we had worked together, he had never acted that impulsively.

"I'll have to call you back." I said as I quickly ended my call and hung up. I stood and crossed to Tank as I spoke. "What is it?"

"Watkins. He has information on Steph. He won't talk to me though. He only wants to give it to you. He wants some kind of a deal. He gave us all the other information about the oversea accounts, but he says that he might know what happened to Steph." His eyes looked frustrated and I could tell he would have much rather been down in the cell beating the information out of Watkins.

I didn't say a word and walked so fast I was practically running to the stairs. I flew down to the basement with Tank close on my heels. I threw open the door to the cell that held Watkins. Bobby was standing against the wall opposite. I almost laughed at the lack of blood in the room. I think just the threat of pain made this pussy crumble. But the fact that he may have some information for me that was more important than all the money in the world just plain pissed me off.

Watkins sat on his cot, his knees brought up to his chest and he was rocking himself and crying. I looked over to Bobby and stood over the cot. Watkins looked up at me through broken glasses with two black eyes. That seemed to be the only visible mark on him.

"I understand you have information for me about Stephanie." I was trying to stay calm, but my patience was coming to an end. He just nodded and continued to rock. "You want to make a deal with me?" Again a silent nod. "Well Stan, here is the deal. You tell me now and we let you live to go to prison. You make me wait one minute longer and Tank and I will start playing handball with you all over this cell." I lean down over him and looked directly into his eyes. "You got your watch set Tank?"

"Fifty seconds and counting." Tank chuckled. Either way, I knew he would be happy.

"Fine. I've had enough. I can't do this anymore. But please when I tell you, let me be done." He was sobbing and I could barely understand him. I nodded my head and stood. "About three days before I came here for the audit, I was leaving the office when a man approached me. He introduced himself as  
Alverez and offered me $50,000 for information about you. He promised me that your life was not in danger, that he was just an old acquaintance of yours. The information he wanted was pretty basic. He wanted to know where you were living, how often you were in the office. If you were married. I told him that you weren't but I had just finished putting together your balance sheets and was frustrated with the Miss Plum situation, and I told him you might as well be with the amount of time and money you put into Stephanie Plum." I found my hand on my gun. Bobby came up behind me and placed a hand on my shoulder. That calmed me slightly and I reconsidered putting a bullet through this weasel's brain. "That's all I know. I never saw him again." He put his head on his knees and cried.

"Get this piece of shit out of here. Hand him over to Morelli and tell him what he did to Steph. He's his problem now." Bobby called up to have Hal transport Watkins to the station. As I was motioning for Bobby and Tank to join me outside the holding cell, my phone rang. I looked at the caller ID and it was Lester.

"Talk."

"Ric, I've found her. She's here in New Orleans, working for Bucky Harris. Alverez and her seem to be partners. I almost didn't recognize her. How do you want me to proceed?" I could feel the anxiety in his voice and I knew it took all his strength not to shoot he son of a bitch, grab Babe and head home.

"Try to engage her alone and let her know the danger she is in. Don't let him see you. I have reason to believe this is not a coincidence. Watkins told Tony about Steph and me."

Lester practically growled. "I will not let her out of my sight, but it will be tricky not alerting Shithead. What is your ETA?" Of course he knew I would be on my way.

"I plan of getting us briefed and wheels off the ground here in no more than five hours. We will have to coordinate with the General and find out exactly what Alverez's current status is. I don't want to piss anyone off by killing the son of a bitch."

"When has that ever stopped you before?" Lester laughed. "No worries brother, I will have take care of her. Call us with the where and the when. Out." His phone disconnected and the three of us ran up the stairs to prep for our trip to New Orleans. But more importantly, to Steph.

Stephanie's POV

This was my second day working with Tony and I was still scared to death of the guy. There was something that reminded me of the men at Rangeman, but there was the rage in Tony's eyes that made me want to run in the opposite direction.

Our first day, we brought in four FTA's and barely spoke fifteen words between us. I missed Lula. Even with our fuckups, we were much better partners than me and Mr. Ticking Time Bomb.

We had already been to Bucky's and picked up five more files. He was practically bouncing in his chair that we were making the progress we were.

We exited the office and Tony opened the first file in the stack. He read it and handed it to me. It was a first time offender named Frank Stevens. He had decided to start a side business in his garage and get into hydroponic. He then had the cheapest alarm company in history install a security system in his house. While he was out, there was a false alarm, the cops were called and peeked into the garage window looking for intruders. When Frank returned home, he found the police waiting for him. He was now living with his parents. I figured that it was a continued string of stupidity that caused him to miss his court date.

I followed Tony to his black Explorer. I swear, what is it with these ex military men and their love of black? It took every ounce of my strength not to ask him if he knew Ranger. But you know what they say about curiosity and cats. Meow.

"So what did you do in the Military Tony?" I smiled at him, but he never took his eyes off the road.

A small smile pulled up the corner of his mouth. "Oh I could tell you." Then he looked at me with complete menace. "But then I'd have to kill you." And I believed him. In my past, when I had been with a man in this situation, we would have this kind of banter, they would smile at me, and I had to keep myself from attacking them and ripping off their clothes; this time I had to force myself to not jump from a moving vehicle. Tony Alverez scared the fucking shit out of me.

No other words were spoken between us and in ten minutes we were parking in the driveway of a rundown ranch house in an even more rundown neighborhood. I opened the file again and looked at the picture. One more look confirmed that the fat slob with the stupid look on his face setting on the top porch step as Frank himself.

I sighed and followed Tony from the car. When we got directly in front of him, he looked up at us, squinting into the sun.

"Are you Frank Stevens?" I asked. Lord knows that the boogeyman next to me wouldn't say that many words at once.

"Yeah."

"Mr. Stevens we represent the Harris Agency. You missed your court date and we need to take you to reschedule." I braced myself for him to do something stupid. Instead he sighed and stood up.

"Fine." He put his hands in front of him and Tony placed the cuffs on. Boy, the criminals here were so much more civilized than in New Jersey.

As we were walking to the car, Frank tripped, over corrected and fell backwards into Tony. With all his force, Tony pushed Frank forward sending him flying face first into the hood of the Explorer. Tony started to yell something is Spanish and then grabbed Frank by the shirt throwing him back away from the car. Frank lay on the grass, his nose bleeding from the first impact, looking dazed. I ran over to him and helped him stand up. As soon as we were both on our feet, Tony looked at us with complete amusement and satisfaction on his face.

"What the hell is your problem?" I yelled at him. God this guy and I had to get through today without killing each other and then I was going to tell Bucky I was ready to fly solo.

I helped Frank into the back seat and handed him a roll of paper towels that Tony had on the floor board. Obviously, this was a repeat occurrence in his world.

We drove in silence again all the way to the police station. We got Frank processed and picked up the body slip. On the way out of the station, Tony caught his pants on a nail that was sticking out of the booking desk.

"Shit. I need to stop by home and get new pants." I was mentally preparing myself for puppies boiling on the stove and old ladies dismembered throughout his apartment.

In less than three minutes and we were in front of his apartment complex. It was one of the newer ones in the area and I didn't know if he wanted me to come up or wait for him in the car.

He didn't look at me but while opening the door he helped make up my mind. "You want some water?"

"Thanks." I exited the Explorer and followed him up the stairs. He was on the third floor and I knew by the time we reached the second floor landing, if I didn't need the water before, I needed it now. To be honest, it was again curiosity more than anything that had me following him to his apartment.

I was relieved when he opened the door and there was no smell of decaying flesh. In fact the place was too clean.

"Water's in the fridge." Tony pointed to the right and disappeared down the narrow hall. I entered the kitchen and opened the fridge. All that was in there was Beer and bottled water. I debated grabbing a beer instead, but didn't want to risk pissing him off. Every surface was clean expect one. The small table in the middle of the room was covered with papers and pictures. I walked over and tried to look casual as I did a quick sweep of the table. Suddenly one image caught my eye. It was the end of a picture sticking out under the other papers. It was a young Tank, standing with his arms folded. I listened and looked towards the doorway to the kitchen as I quickly slipped the picture farther out from under the papers. I didn't remove it completely from the papers though, because I needed to be able to return it undetected in a hurry. I quickly looked down and the picture contained Tank, Bobby, Ranger, Lester and Tony. All looked to be in their early twenties, wearing army fatigues. I quickly pushed the picture back where it had been and tried to steady myself. I moved to the counter and leaned against it, trying to look casual while I drank my water. Inside however, I was screaming.

As usual, my life can never be simple. I knew there was something off, but the real question is, if Tony had been part of Ranger's unit, why had I never met him? I needed to get away from him though. The quicker the better.

Right then Tony walked into the kitchen and over to the fridge. He pulled out a water and drained the bottle in one long drink.

I cleared my throat and tried to make my eyes droop. "Would you mind going it alone for the rest of the day? I have a problem with migraines and I can feel one coming on." The look he gave me almost made me wet my pants. But then he just nodded his head once and headed back to the front door. I followed sheepishly, probably trying too hard to look sick. We didn't say two word while we drove back to Bucky's. I got out of the Explorer and didn't want it to seem too obvious that I runny away from him.

"Thanks. See you tomorrow." I closed the door and did a finger wave as he pulled away from the curb. I walked as fast as I could without running back to my loft. I wanted to go home. I felt vulnerable and exposed and scared to death.

When I got into my house, I closed and locked the door, sliding down the door crying. I fished my gun out of my bag and placed it next to me. A knock on my door brought me out of my crying fit. I slowly stood, grabbing my gun. I raised the gun and flung the door open. If my instincts were right and Tony was evil, he wasn't taking me without a fight.

Standing there in tan slacks, a Hawaiian shirt and a fedora was Lester.

"Glad to see you too Beautiful."


	6. Chapter 6

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. With the exception of Alverez, Watkins and Bucky. Hope you enjoy this chapter. Reunion of Ranger and Steph coming in Chapter 7. Thanks for the reviews.

Chapter 6

Stephanie's POV

I let my hand holding the gun fall to my side. With my left hand I grabbed Lester's shirt and pulled him into the loft. I started to cry and he took the gun from me and put it in the back of his waistband then drew me into a tight hug. I buried my head on his shoulder and let the security of his presence wash over me.

Lester rubbed my back, and started to walk us farther into the room, closing the door behind him with his foot. He chuckled and pulled me back from him placing both of his hands on my shoulders. "First of all, love the new look Beautiful. Secondly, can I just say that if it wasn't for bad luck, you'd have no luck at all."

All of a sudden I realized that I had been all wrong about Tony and that is why Lester was here. Ranger had sent Tony to look for me and he was just keeping me busy until the cavalry arrived. I angrily wiped the tears from my eyes and jerked myself out of Lester's grasp. "So what, you guys are calling in backups now. You could have at least picked someone with a better personality. Tony has as much warmth as Charles Manson. You guys sure know how to pick your friends." I turned my back on him and walked over to the window. It was open and I started to go out onto the balcony. Lester quickly grabbed my arm and jerked me back into the interior of the loft. He turned me to look at him and all the humor had left his face.

"Antonio Alverez is no friend of ours. It is by pure luck that I happened to find you." He took my hand and led me to the couch, pulling me down with him as he sat. "You know how Ranger has told you for a long time now that there are people out there who want to hurt him?" I nodded and let my fear take back over. Maybe my instincts were better than I gave myself credit for. Lester put his arm around my shoulder and pulled me into him. I put my head on his chest. I liked Lester a lot, don't get me wrong. But at that moment, I would have given anything for Ranger to be the one with his arms around me. "Tony is one of those people. Really, he is at the top of the list. He holds Ranger responsible for the death of the woman he loved. And now it appears that he is trying to make good on his threat of returning the favor."

I lifted my head slightly and Lester tightened his grasp around my shoulder, keeping me in place. "But I saw a picture of all of you together?"

"We were like brothers at one time, but during a mission, Tony let himself fall in love with someone, who unfortunately became collateral damage by the end of the mission. It wasn't anyone's fault. It was just one of those things that happens when you do the kinds of jobs we did. But Tony needed someone to blame other than himself, so he made Ranger the target of his revenge."

I pushed against his arm and set up so I could look into his face. "That still doesn't explain why you think he is after me. I'm in a completely different city, using a different name. He shouldn't know me from Adam. Besides, what makes him think Ranger is in love with me? Are you sure this isn't just some really strange coincidence?"

Lester went on to explain the meeting between Watkins and Alverez. Talking about Watkins brought back all the emotions of why I left in the first place. Lester explained that they had gone over the tapes from the day of the audit and heard everything that Watkins had said to me. I looked at the floor, again feeling guilty and the weight of the responsibility I felt slumped my shoulders.

"Steph, I knew that something was wrong that day. I'm so sorry that I didn't stop all this before it got this far. I just wish you would have talked to me instead of running away. We are friends aren't we? At least I thought we were."

I started to cry again. Damn it. I looked at him and gave him a smile. "Yeah, Lester, we are friends. And because of that, it is my duty to tell you, you look ridiculous in that hat." He laughed, took it off and threw it across the room. "Do you know how pissed off Tony is going to be when he finds out that Watkins led him to the wrong object of Ranger's affections." I laughed and looked at my hands.

Lester reached over and put his hand on my knee. "Beautiful, you are one of the smartest people I have ever met. But for a smart girl, you can be really fucking stupid." I looked up at him and he was smiling at me, his eyes were full of sympathy and friendship. "I've know Ric my whole life. I've seen him through everything. Tank, Bobby and I know his moods. We know what he is thinking before he has to say anything. And that man is so in love with you; he doesn't know what to do with himself." I tried to believe him, but I was an action kind of gal. Second hand verbal confessions of love and adoration did little to solidify anything for me. "That scares him shitless too. The day you left, and every day since, he has been a wreck. You are part of him now. Without you there, part of him is gone. And it is the part that makes Ranger, Ranger."

"But.." I tried to protest, but he cut me off.

"But what? The money? The cars? A few minor flesh wounds? That is nothing. He would put it all on the line for you. We all would. We are bunch of tough guys, who's only real sense of family comes from a bunch of other tough guys and one really accident prone, beautiful, smart, special bounty hunter. And you are what makes the head of this crazy, dysfunctional family happy. You make what could be a really lonely and hard life fun and interesting." I continued to look at my hand and he put his hand under my chin to raise my eyes to look at him. "He is completely in love with you Beautiful. He has been since that first day he met you. Stop selling yourself short and stop underestimating him. Trust him. He's good for it." Just then Lester's phone rang. He looked at the display and smiled at me before answering. "Speak of the devil."

He quickly opened the phone. "Yo." Lester looked at me and winked. "Well since I am setting here with a raven haired beauty in my arms, I would say that is affirmative." I smiled at him and he stood and stared pacing while he talked. "No she found a picture of us all together, and at first thought you had called in a B team to find her." He laughed. "No, trust me. There is no love lost between them." Lester retrieved a small notepad from his pocket and read off Tony's address. Oh God. My stomach fell to my shoes. Ranger was going to go after him. I started to shake and Lester crossed to me and sat down again, pulling me to his side. "She's actually turning a little green. You want to talk to her?" He handed me the phone.

I took a deep breath before I put the phone to my ear. I wanted to be as calm as I could be, because the last thing he needed to worry about was me. "Ranger?"

"Babe." The sound of relief in his voice sent tears flowing down my cheeks again. "He didn't hurt you did he?"

"No Ranger. I'm fine. He never even laid a finger on me. He is one scary guy though. Please don't do anything to get yourself hurt." I put my hand over the mouthpiece, because a sob was starting to escape.

"Babe, you worry too much. Lester is staying with you until we get there. Try to relax. I'll be there as soon as I can." I took a deep breath and closed my eyes trying to picture his face. "Oh and Babe, if you ever even think about leaving me again, I will lock you up and throw away the key. That is a promise."

I laughed slightly. Leave it up to him to be on the verge of facing a psycho and he is making jokes.

"You say that now, but you haven't seen the changes to my appearance yet. You could decide to throw me to the wolves." I wanted to try to be playful back. But there was a shake in my voice that kind of ruined the intent.

"You're still you Babe. That's all that matters. That's all I need." I closed my eyes and let his words sink in. "I will be with you soon." And he was gone.

I handed the phone back to Lester and flopped back into the couch. "You got any beer in that fridge?" Lester asked making his way into the kitchen.

I laughed. "Diesel stocked it. What do you think?"

He grabbed us each a beer and then, after handing one to me, proceeded to shut all storm shutters on the windows and double check the door. He walked over and turned on the table lamps on the end table next to the couch and on the nightstand next to the bed. He grabbed the remote and plopped down next to me on the couch and started to channel surf finally stopping on "The Great Escape". We had only missed the first five minutes and we enjoyed each other's company and a few more beers before Steve McQueen was escorted back to the hot box for the final time.

I stood and stretched. Looked at my watch and realized that over two hours had passed since Ranger called. Lester started searching the channels again. "Do you suppose there is time for me to take a shower and get cleaned up a bit?"

Lester didn't look up at me "Go for it Beautiful. It's going to be a long night. I'll be right here."

I walked into the bathroom, got undressed and stepped in the shower. I closed my eyes and let the warm water wash over me the soothing realization that Ranger would be here with me soon.

Ranger POV

When we got to Alverez's apartment, he was already gone. But he had left a note on the fridge.

_Manoso,_

_I spotted Lester outside the bond office when I dropped your Bitch off today. You and your men must be losing their touch. _

_I've had to change my plans that I had for Stephanie. Hopefully I still get the alone time I had wanted. I was really looking forward to making her scream. But as you know, sometimes you have to go with plan B. This will be fun too. _

_Enjoy your time together while you can. Make memories fast. Soon they will be all you have left._

I left the note on the fridge and went back to the car. I called Lester to let him know that Alverez was still out there and he was completely out of his mind.

"What's the plan now Ric?" Lester asked after I got the address to where he and Steph were.

"We stay here tonight. Then head back home tomorrow." I just wished we could go back to Trenton with this done and not have this damn sword hanging over our heads. "Where's Babe?"

"She's in the shower. I staked out the empty apartment next door. One of us could be on watch while the other camp out there. Her place is completely secure. I've got all the storm shutters closed and there is only one way in or out. We are as safe here as anywhere."

We were able to find a parking spot right in front of Steph's building. Leave it up to Babe to get a place above a bakery. I picked the lock to the door that led to the stairway. I made sure that it was secure then Tank, Bobby and I headed up the stairs. Lester was waiting out in the hall. He looked ridiculous in his incognito get up. He just shrugged his shoulders as we started to laugh.

"The three of us have got this tonight." Lester moved out of the doorway and opened the door to the other apartment across the hall. "Go in there and be with Steph. And for God sakes man, stop wasting time. For all of our sakes, tell her how you feel. I say this to you not only as your friend and cousin, but as someone who is getting really tired of your fucking mood swings."

I pushed him into the other apartment and then walked into Steph's place and shut the door behind me. I heard the shower turn off and the hairdryer start. I crossed the room to say hello to Rex. It was the only thing in this strange place that even felt like Babe.

But I could feel her presence. I decided to take Lester's advice. It had been long enough. Time for Babe's and my forever to begin.


	7. Chapter 7

I do not own these characters except for previously noted exceptions. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I can't thank you enough for your reviews and encouragement. This is my first attempt at writing something steamy, and I am nervous about it, but please be honest with me. Let me know if I went too far, or if you want me to be more explicit. Thank you all again! Hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 7

Stephanie's POV

As the hot water was starting to run out, I felt the all too familiar shiver run down the back of my neck. Ranger was here. I quickly exited the shower and dried off. I then realized that I had neglected to bring in any clothes with me when I came. The only thing I had in my bathroom to wear was a sky blue silk thigh length robe from Victoria Secret. Well so much for playing hard to get.

I carefully blow dried my hair, trying to get it as straight as possible, applied my makeup and gave myself a quick spray of Dolce Vita. I did one more quick assessment of myself. The hair made me look like a completely different person. I was torn between worrying if Ranger wouldn't like it, or if he would like it too much. I turned off the bathroom light and opened the door. It took me a while to let my eyes adjust to the dimly lit large room. The small light next to the couch was still on, but the light next to the bed had been turned off. I didn't see Ranger, but on the chair next to my bed was his personal arsenal, with his boots carefully placed underneath and a black t-shirt folded and hung over the back. I tentatively stepped farther into the room, slowly searching for him. I knew he was here. I could feel him.

It wasn't until my eyes made their second sweep of the room that I saw him immerge from the shadows on the opposite side of the bed. I froze in mid step as he made his way across the room to me. He was perfect. My eyes quietly assessed this man who would have made the Greek Gods cry out in envy. He didn't say a word until he was standing six inches in front of me. I looked up into his eyes and let my desire and need for him seep into every inch of my body.

"Babe." He ran his hand over my hair and let it rest on my cheek.

I reached out and put my hand on his bare chest, feeling his heart beat. The silence continued as we looked into each other's eyes. But that silence was still filled with everything I had been waiting years to hear.

My breath caught as he moved his hands to the front of my robe. He gently untied it and slid his hand around my waist and gently squeeze as he lifted me off the ground. Instinctually, I wrapped my legs around his waist and pressed myself against his bare skin. He kept one hand supporting me so that I wouldn't slide down him and the other he place on the back of my neck, keeping our eyes locked.

"It's someday Babe. Without you there is not future for me that I would want. I love you Stephanie." I had been waiting so long to hear those words from him. The magnitude of them took my breath away and for a second I was unable to speak.

I ran my fingers through his hair and pulled myself even closer to him. I moved his head to the side and kissed his neck. I put my lips to his ear and whispered, "I love you Carlos. Make love to me." I needed to not only hear the words he was saying to me, I needed to feel them. The electric charge that always was around when Ranger was in the room started to throw lightening blots through my body.

Ranger carried me across the room and knelt on the bed before placing me gently on the pillows. He slowly lowered his face kissing my forehead, my eyelids, down my cheek to my jaw. I closed my eyes and was lost in this touch. I felt his lips leave me and I opened my eyes. He was looking at me with so much love I almost started to cry. Never in my life had anyone looked at me that way. My whole body screamed out for his touch. He then lowered his mouth slowly to mine. I could feel his breath on my lips and the anticipation was almost painful. When his lips met mine, he ran his tongue over my lips and I gave his mouth access to mine. Our tongues danced as we shared breaths.

My legs were still wrapped around his waist and I felt his erection push against me. I loved the feel of his weight on me. He was supporting himself with one arm as his free hand caressed my face. He pulled back from our kiss and looked at me with loving, but wicked eyes. "Stay." He whispered and moved his mouth to my neck.

Ranger's POV

I wanted to leave my mark on every inch of her body. I had waited so long for this miracle that I never thought was possible. I started to kiss her neck and then gently sucked on her ear lobe as I whispered to her in Spanish "Cada respiracion que tomo le pretence a usted. Cada ve que mi corazon late, que late solo para usted." (Every breath I take belongs to you. Every time my heart beats, it beats only for you.)

I continued to kiss my way down her neck. God she smelled so good. She shuddered under me as I traced her collar bone with my tongue. I kissed down in between her breasts, while I caressed them, bringing her nipple to attention under my fingers. I turned my head and put my ear to her heart, kissing the side of her breast as I listened to it the excitement in her uneven breath. I worked my mouth to her right breast and devoured it. I continued on to the left, not wanting it to feel neglected. I ran my tongue down her cleavage and started to kiss my way to her stomach.

I looked up at Babe as I pushed myself farther down the bed and her body. Her eyes were dark with desire and she licked her lips. "Talk to me Carlos." And the huskiness of her voice all most made me want to divulge all my secrets.

"Quiero despertar cada manana junto a ti. Mis suenos son solo de ustedes.(I want to wake beside you every morning. My dreams are only of you.)

I ran my tongue in her navel and sudden was over powered by a want that I thought I would never have. But with this beautiful woman in my arms, I wanted it more I ever imagined possible.

"Quiero ver a mi bebe crece detro de ti." (I want to see my baby growing inside you.)

I kissed down her and paused to inhale her scent. I didn't think it was possible to want her more, but right then she raised her hips. My mouth was against her now and she moaned as I slowly brought my tongue out for a taste. Suddenly I was ravenous for her. I slid my hand under her and held her to me. She began to moan louder and move deeper onto my mouth. "Carlos", I heard her pant and I knew she was starting to climax. I quickly inserted my fingers into her and her body contracted around them. I prolonged the orgasm, letting her ride it as long as possible. "I love you Carlos. I need to feel you inside me." She was begging and my desire and need for her took over. I quickly unbuttoned my pants and kicked them off as I positioned myself above her again.

Steph fisted her hands into my hair and pulled my mouth to hers. I was so hard. The head of my cock was rubbing against her. She moved her legs around me, opening up herself for me. Babe was looking me directly in the eyes. Her love for me visible and I never wanted to be apart from her. I knew that from this day forward, if she was to ever leave me, I would cease to be.

"No sera para siempre el tiempo suficiente para nosotros, mi amor. Eres mio Stephanie. Todo lo que tengo es tuyo. Por favor, nunca me dejen de nuevo. (Forever will not be long enough for us my love. You are mine Stephanie. All I have is yours. Please never leave me again.)

I slowly started to push myself inside her. "Babe." Her warmth surrounded me and she pushed me deeper with her legs around me. Stephanie said my name over and over. I rolled her so that she was straddling me.

She looked down and me with her beautiful blue eyes shining. I reached up and squeezed her breasts. They bounced as she rode me. Babe ran her nails down my chest and her touch sent an even deeper fire through me . She moaned louder, saying "I love you Carlos." I started to feel her body contract around me. I pumped into her deeper and faster as we came together and I left my final mark inside of her.

She fell, exhausted, onto my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, running my fingers up and down her spine. She kissed my neck and then raised herself up to look into my eyes smiling.

"So what do you think of my hair?"


	8. Chapter 8

I do not own these characters, except for those already noted. They belong to Janet Evanovich.

Well, I know how I want this story to go, and I hope you will all follow along with me and not hate me. The story might get a little dark a few chapter down the road, but go on this journey with me and we will all get our happily ever after.

Thank you again for all of your reviews.

Chapter 8

Ranger's POV

After making love most of the night, Babe finally fell asleep in my arms. I kissed her on the top of the head and carefully slid my arm out from under her and climbed out of bed. I wanted to check on my men and see what the itinerary for our trip back to Trenton was. I pulled my pants back on and walked quietly to the front door. I slowly opened it, hoping that the squeak of the hinges wouldn't disturb my sleeping beauty. I had to stifle a laugh though at the sight that greeted me.

Setting on the floor, against the door opposite me was Tank. He was looking towards the stairs and singing "Row Row Row Your Boat", quietly to himself. The squeaky hinge alerted him of my presence and he quickly stood. I gave him a look that requested some kind of explanation.

Tank just shrugged his shoulder and said "You guys were really loud." I laughed and came out into the hall shutting the door behind me.

"Do we have the timing finalized for our trip home tomorrow?" I imagined that we would be in the air first thing in the morning, but I wanted to be sure. The more distance we put between us and Alverez the better.

"Wheels off the ground at 10:30. Bobby and Lester went and got some boxes for Bombers things. We will pack her up after you guys get some sleep. All's been quiet here. I don't think he is stupid enough to try anything now. He knows we are all here and he knows us well enough to understand he doesn't have a chance." We had been a team at one moment in time and knowing what we all knew about each other would have advantages, but even more disadvantages.

"Thanks. I'm going to get some sleep. Plan on coming in at 07:30 for pack up. I'll make sure we are awake and going by then." Tank nodded in acknowledgment and I headed back into the loft. I quickly undressed and climbed back into bed. As my weight adjusted the mattress, Steph was immediately moving close to me. She put her head on my chest and her I felt her breathing deepen as she drifted even farther into sleep.

I ran my hand down her back and before I knew it, the alarm on my watch was going off. I felt rested though, even though I had only gotten five hours of sleep. I have lived off less. I kissed Steph's hair and she stirred under me.

"Babe, time to wake up. We need to get into the shower and the guys need to get you packed up."

Steph kissed my chest and rolled to her side of the bed. "Are we going home?" She asked with sleep still filling her voice.

"We are leaving at 10." I rolled to look at her and I could tell she wasn't awake yet. All of a sudden her eyes popped open. She looked at me with complete panic.

"I can't go back to Trenton. I don't have anywhere to life. My apartment is gone, and I can't live with my parents." She rolled over flat on her back staring at the ceiling.

I laughed slightly. I knew she would be pissed if I put enthusiasm behind it. "Babe, don't worry about it."

She turned her head and gave me an incredulous look. "Don't worry about it? That is easy for you to say. You have how many apartments to choose from, not to mention the Batcave. I will be homeless. God I don't think I can handle one more screw up." She then rolled on her side to face away from me.

I put my arm around her and dragged her across the bed into my chest. "I would never let you be homeless. You can stay Rangeman. Either up on seven with me, or if you would be more comfortable, we could set you up in one of the small apartments on four. Besides, I think living at Rangeman is the best thing for your safety anyway." She pressed herself even closer to me. I could get used to waking up this way. And to be honest, that scared the hell out of me.

Stephanie POV

Ranger and I took a shower together. Wanted to conserve water you know. When we were done, he went into the main room, while I stayed in the bathroom to get ready. I heard a knock on the door and then the sound of things being shuffled about. I assumed that the Merry Men were packing. Boy I would have to remember they offer this service next time I decide to be a complete idiot and make a quick getaway.

After blow drying my hair, I pulled it back into a high pony tail. I once again didn't bring in any clothes with me. Crap. I stuck my head out of the door. "Carlos?" I called. Lester came and stood in front of me.

"He's on the phone. What do you need beautiful?"

"I need some clothes. I didn't bring any in with me. Just underwear, jeans and a t-shirt would be great. Thanks." I blushed at the thought of Lester having to grab my underwear and bra for me.

He came back and handed me the jeans, shirt and bra. He then held up a pair of white cotton panties with a pink lipstick mark embroider on the hip. "Ranger is a lucky man." I blushed and quickly snatched them out of his hands as I shut the door on him. But his laughter still seeped through.

I dressed, finished my makeup and came out into the main room. I went over to put my shoes on. Someone had left my cross trainers on the floor by the bed and a pair of socks waiting for me. As I sat down to put my shoes on, Bobby quickly went into the bathroom and within three minutes, came out with a full box. As I looked around the room, I was beginning to think they had missed their calling. If the security business didn't work out they could start Merry Men Movers and make a killing.

Ranger entered back into the loft, closing his phone. He crossed to me as I heard the guys leave, closing the door behind them. He leaned down and kissed me, forcing me back onto the bed. He pulled away and smiled.

"One of the first things on the list of to do's when we get back to Trenton is get you your hair back. Not that you don't look beautiful no matter what, but this is too tame for you Babe." He ran his hand along the side of my hair.

"Ok. I will make an appointment tomorrow. No promise though. I don't know how it will turn out. It could end up orange again." He just laughed slightly and leaned in and kissed me. He slowly started to kiss my neck and I was suddenly lost in bliss under his touch, so when he started talking, I couldn't figure out what he was saying.

"Have you decided yet?" He whispered in my ear and I was having a hard time understanding the English language.

"Have I decided what?" I was finally able to mutter once I got my bearings.

"Where you want your boxes taken when we get back?" Well that was the million dollar question I guess wasn't it.

"I can tell you right now, if I have them taken to seven, I am not moving out. If you get sick of me, you have to leave." Was it a test? You're damn straight it was a test, and he passed with flying colors.

"Sound like a deal. And just so you know, Babe, I'm not going anywhere." He quickly kissed me again and then helped me off the bed. We did one more walk through of the loft to make sure we didn't forget anything. Ranger grabbed Rex and we headed down to the car.

The last thing I had to do before leaving was stop by and break the news to Bucky.

"Damn it. Not again. I lose all my guys on the same day. Well at least you didn't get hurt. I just hope that I can find someone as good as you to take over." I gave Bucky a quick hug. He was a nice guy and I hated to leave him in a lurch.

"Did Tony give you any information about where he might have gone?" Ranger was standing next to me with his arm around my waist.

"Nothing. Sorry. Is there a number you can be reached at if I hear from him again or something?" Bucky looked at me with a guilty expression. I think he felt responsible for making Tony and I partners. Really, how could he have known?

Ranger passed him his card and we said one more goodbye. We headed off to the airport, and just as we were getting on the plane, my new cell phone I had gotten when I got to New Orleans, beeped to alert of an incoming text message. Only three people had this number. Buck, Diesel and Tony.

It was an audio file. I showed it to Ranger and he hit the play button. "I'll Be Seeing You" started to play. My knees gave out on me and Ranger caught me, pulling me into his arms. After he had me tight against him, I heard my phone crumble under his crushing grip.


	9. Chapter 9

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Thank you for all your reviews. Hope you enjoy it!

Chapter 9

Stephanie's POV

We were on a private plane home. The large seats were comfortable, but there was a tension in the air. Ranger should have known that Tony would not let him off the hook. And while I know the call didn't surprise him, it still angered him more than I think I had ever seen.

We had raised the arm rest that separated our seats and I had my head on his chest with him arm around me, holding me close. I think I fell asleep shortly after takeoff. The dream that followed made me wish I had a coffee IV. It was one of the worst I had ever had.

It started off beautiful. I was on a white sand beach. The sun was reflecting off the bluest water I had ever seen. I felt a familiar set of arms around me and I leaned back into Ranger's chest as he kissed my neck.

Suddenly black clouds started to form. I water was black ink, a reflection of the sky overhead. I felt Ranger's arms loosen and I tried to grab his hand, but he was gone. I started to run, and tripped. I fell to the sand hard and looked to see what I had kicked. There was a body under my feet. I turned and it was Bobby. I got checked him and he didn't move. I got up and started to run. In front of me was another body. Tank. The beach was covered with bodies of the people I loved and cared about. Lester, Lula, Connie, my Parents , Grandma Mazur, the last body I came to was Joe. I then heard a laugh ahead of me. I looked up and Ranger was running towards me, but in between us was Tony.

Tony turned to me and smiled. He raised a gun and pointed it at Ranger who slowed his run slightly.

"No." I yelled. "Take me. Please, don't hurt him." I was almost to Tony now and he looked towards me, smiling like I had just given him the best gift imaginable.

"Babe, stop." Ranger yelled. I saw the panic in his eye. I looked back to Tony for a split second.

"Don't you realize that without you, his life wouldn't be worth living? A love for a love. A life for a life." I heard the gun go off and my eyes went back to Ranger.

"NO." He screamed and as I started to fall, I felt his arms under me. The sound he made almost didn't sound human and I felt a pain rip through my heart.

I jumped awake, and Ranger was kissing my forehead. "Bad dream Babe?" He had worry in his voice and I knew it would do no good to tell him what my dream had consisted of.

"I'm fine. Are we home yet?" He kissed the top of my head. I pulled myself tighter into his chest.

"We are just now descending. About another fifteen minutes and we will be home." I looked up at him and he smiled a half smile. "Do you want to stop anywhere on your way home? Tank will take your stuff back to Rangeman and Ella will get you settled. I thought you might like to check in with a few people." He knew me better than I thought.

"I'd like to stop by and see Lula and Connie. I have to make amends with Vinnie too." I didn't think I was up to making a stop at my parents tonight. "I'll stop by and see my parents tomorrow."

Ranger laughed and leaned down to kiss me. Before his lips met mine he whispered "Chicken." Yes. That was right. I was avoiding confrontation. I needed to build up to all the Hail Mary's and secret pulls on my Mother's hidden bottle in the kitchen.

"Yep." I said and raised my mouth to his. It was a quick kiss, followed by a toe curler. For a second, I almost offered to submit my membership to the mile high club, but I think I had put Tank, Bobby and Lester through enough uncomfortable mental images.

When we had landed and were taxiing to the private hanger, Ranger crossed to Tank and gave his instructions. I got up and gave Lester, and Bobby hugs.

"Thank you both for everything." They smiled at me and Lester pulled my ponytail.

"Anything for you Beautiful."

I crossed to Tank when Ranger was through talking to him. I gave him a big hug and he gently squeezed me back.

"Thanks Tank. Lula is a lucky woman."

He laughed lightly. "Thanks Bomber." Then he dropped his arms and the three of them headed off the plane.

The pilot came out of the cockpit. "Anything else Mr. Manoso?"

"No Carl. Thank you for a safe trip." Ranger shook his hand and Carl left the plane, leaving Ranger and I alone.

Ranger's POV

I sat down in one of the chairs, grabbing Babe's hand and pulling her with me. She sat on my lap, laughing at our sudden movement. I had something I wanted to tell her, and it couldn't wait.

"Babe." She looked at me, and I think she could tell by my tone that I wanted her to pay attention. "I want you to know that you are safe. I will do everything in my power to make sure that we have a long and happy life together. That is what I want more than anything in the world Stephanie. I want us to build a life. I want to share my bed with you every night and wake up beside you every morning. Someday, when we are both ready, I want to give you my name. And then I want to build a family with you. I am not talking about tomorrow, we have time. I want us both to be ready. I know what it is like now to lose you and I couldn't live through that again."

Steph put her hand on my face and kissed me. She pulled back and looked into my eyes, tears pooling in them. "Thank you, for knowing me. Thank you for letting me be who I am. I will wait for you as long as it takes. Sharing a life with you, in any way we can, is all I ask for. That and for you to always look at me the way you are now."

I kissed her this time, but I wanted to get our visits done so I could take her home. To our home. "Let's get this over with." She laughed and stood, holding my hand and pulling me to my feet. I put my arm around her waist and led her out of the plane and to my waiting Porsche.

We sped from the airport, through Trenton to the bond office. When I pulled up, we could see Lula and Connie setting in their usual chairs. They both looked depressed and on the verge of tears; their heads down. When Babe got out of the car, even in the street I heard Lula scream and saw Connie jump. Lula came running out of the office, wrapping her arms around Steph and jumping up and down.

"White girl, you're home!" I tried to remain stoic, but just the sight of them bouncing was more than even my blank face could take. I walked over to them to get them to move inside. It was too open out here on the street and I still had no idea where Alverez was. I knew him well enough though to know that he had all the patience in the world and he would wait to strike when maximum damage could be inflicted.

"Thank God. We have been worried sick about you." Connie came around the desk and gave Steph a big hug.

Vinnie stuck his head out of his office. "Don't think you can just waltz back in here and get your old job back. I have a whole stack of resumes here, and I could pick anyone of them and they would be better than you." Steph didn't say anything; she just put her hands on her hips and lowered her head slightly, giving him her best Jersey Glare. "But since you are family, I'm willing to give you another chance." Vinnie then pulled his head back in his office and shut the door.

"I'll be in tomorrow to pick up my files. I just wanted to say hi and that I'm back." Babe grabbed my hand and started to walk towards the door.

"Hey wait a minute White Girl. Where are you living now?" Lula's eyes were focused on Steph and my hands connected.

"Babe's doing me the honor of living with me." And with that, I picked Babe up in my arms, exited the bond office, gave her one hell of a kiss and deposited her into the passenger seat of my car. I looked back into the office as I was getting in myself and both the women were leaning back in their chairs, fanning themselves.

Steph was beaming. I reached over and took her hand as we drove in silence back to Rangeman. For the first time in a long time, it felt like I was coming back to a real home.

When we were parked we got out of the car and Steph gave her usual wave to the camera. I knew whoever was on the monitors would be smiling. This was where this beautiful lady belonged.

We got in elevator and went straight up to seven. We entered the apartment and I saw the Ella had been busy. There were no boxes anywhere to be seen and I saw Steph's thing mingling with my sparse pictures and mementos. I heard Rex running on his wheel and I took a deep sigh.

"You're not regretting this already are you?" Babe's voice shook. I turned and lifted her up while she wrapped her legs around my waist and her arms around my neck.

"Not even for a second. Welcome home Babe." I felt myself growing hard as she pressed herself against me. I started to kiss her deeply as I slowly made my way to the bedroom. Our bedroom. I wanted to make love to my woman in our home and there was nothing that could stop me.


	10. Chapter 10

I do not own these characters except where previously noted. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I am hoping that the ideas I have for the continuation of this story doesn't jump the shark. I hope that I don't lose people in the coming chapters. I promise there will be a HEA. Just might take some dark turns to get there.

Chapter 10

Stephanie's POV

Ranger and I spent the rest of the day and all night making love, laughing and sharing memories of our pasts and dreams of our future together. I had never in my life talked as much. We only left the bedroom for food, and then that consisted of us eating peanut butter straight out of the jar and some strawberries and champagne that Ella snuck in sometime while we were distracted. The rest of Trenton could have been leveled to the ground and I don't think we would have noticed.

When I woke the next morning I reached over only to find the other side of the bed empty. I slowly opened my eyes and felt the still warm imprint where Ranger had been. I heard the shower running and I slowly sat up, placed my unsteady feet on the floor and walked to the bathroom. I stood silently for a moment, watching Ranger as the hot water and steam caressed his body. He turned and smiled as he caught me red handed.

"Stay away for me you little witch. You've put a spell on me and now you are hell bent to drain all of my bodily fluids. I need to replenish before parts of me shrivel up."

I giggled and opened the shower door, stepped in and he brought me close to him, enveloping me in his arms. We stood there silently and just enjoyed to closeness we felt. Closeness in mind, body and soul. I stepped back and grabbed the shower gel and my pink shower puff. I cleaned myself, watching Ranger do the same. I closed my eyes as his fingers brushed away the lather from my nipples. He ran his fingers all over my body, creating patterns in the lather. He gently moved me under the shower head and put his hand at the base of my neck, leaning me back slightly into the water.

"Can I wash your hair?" I was so surprised. I had never had anyone wash my hair before. Well except at the beauty parlor, but that didn't count.

I just silently nodded my head and Ranger proceeded to gently run his hands through my hair, getting it wet. He turned me so that I was facing away from him. He started to massage the shampoo into my scalp, softly and it sent shivers of excitement down my spine. I leaned my head back and he massaged my temples then ran his hand through my hair, washing it all the way to the ends. He then turned me again. I had my eyes closed, so I just expected him to place me under the water, but before he did, he leaned my head back and gave me a deep, long, lingering kiss. He then supported my neck with one hand, leaning me back under the water, running his other hand through my hair to rinse it. As he raised me out of the water, I opened my eyes and his eyes were dark, looking at me with desire and want.

Ranger turned me and gently pushed me up against the wall of the shower. He started to kiss my neck and down my back. I raised one of my feet to the tile seat, and his hand instantly slid between my legs. Ranger started to whisper in my ear in Spanish as his fingers entered me. "No me siento complete hasta estoy dentro de ti. Usted es el único que lo quiere. Tu eres todo lo que va a necesitar Babe. Mi vida, mi corazón y todo lo que tengo es tuyo. Siempre." (I don't feel complete until I am inside you. You are the only one I'll ever want. You are all I'll ever need Babe. My life, my heart and everything I have is yours. Always.)

I didn't know what he had said to me, but there was something in his voice that brought tears to my eyes. He removed his fingers and slowly started to make love to me. He moved inside me, kissing my neck and fondling my breasts with his hands. He suddenly stopped moving and I moved my head to look at him.

"Babe, am I hurting you? You're crying." He started to pull away from me. I suddenly reached my hands back pushing against him to keep him and I joined.

"I'm happy." I whispered. "You have made me the happiest woman alive. I feel like I'm dreaming."

He again leaned forward, kissing my neck, moving deeper inside me. We climaxed together as he gently pulled my hair and stifled a passionate cry in a rough kiss on my neck.

We rewashed ourselves, and Ranger exited the shower while I conditioned my hair.

"I am spent Babe. I think you may have broke me." Ranger laughed as he dried himself.

"Oh no." I stuck my head out of the shower door as he leaned over and have me a quick kiss. "How will you have the energy now to stay away from Grandma Mazur? You better not go commando today. That sexy ass of yours might need extra protection. She is the fastest ass pincher in the state you know."

Ranger just shook his head, and then lowered it in resignation. "Crap, I forgot all about dealing with your sex starved Granny. And I was in such a good mood too."

Ranger POV

Babe and I dressed. I was off line today, so it was a black tee shirt, black jeans and a pair of riding boots. Steph looked beautiful. She put on a simple dress, but she made it look like a million bucks, plus she was wearing heels. I swear she was trying to kill me.

We stopped by five so she could see all the guys and I thought that now was as good of a time as any to make an announcement I had about work assignments.

Steph and I exited the elevator and crossed to the monitor bank. Bobby, Tank, Hal and Lester were looking at the monitors and quietly discussing one of the accounts. Bobby was the first to see us.

"Well I didn't expect to see you two for a week. Decide to come up for some air?"

The other three laughed and I just smiled, pulling Babe a little closer to me as she blushed.

"I have a new work detail to assign, and it involves Stephanie. When she is out of the office, and I am not with her, Santos you will be. The rest of you, every free moment we have will be used searching for Alverez." I looked at Lester and a silent understanding went between us. He was not only my employee, and my friend, but he was family too. I was trusting him with the person who mattered most to me, and he knew that.

"Looks like it's gonna be you and me beautiful."

Steph stuck her hand out and Lester shook it. "Looks like it partner."

Lester looked at me with laughing eyes, but kept the rest of his face serious, still not letting go of Babe's hand. "I get hazard pay right, if I'm working with Bomber? Or at least a raise in my insurance benefits."

Steph pulled her hand away and hit him on the arm.

I took Babe's hand and started towards the elevator. "We will be offline until the morning."

They all nodded their heads and we got in the elevator and headed to the garage. I opened Steph's door and helped her into the Porsche. I got in and we rode in silence all the way to her parents' house.

I turned the car off and started to open my door. She grabbed my hand to stop me.

"Wait." Steph took a deep breath as if to steady herself. She then looked to her parents' house and her Mother and Grandmother were standing on the porch. "Crap. No getting away now huh?"

I lean over and quickly kissed her. "Afraid not Babe. Let's get this over. And I will break the old woman's fingers if necessary. Fair warning."

We exited the car and Mrs. Plum's mouth fell open. "Where have you been young lady? And what in God's name happened to your hair?"

Steph sighed. "I had to go away on some business. But I'm back now. Better than ever." She leaned in and gave her Grandmother a hug and she rubbed her Mother's arm. "Something smells good Mom."

We entered the house and Mrs. Plum, Helen, escorted us into the kitchen. Steph's Father, Frank, was nowhere to be found. I assumed he must be working.

Steph set on one of the stools and I stood behind her, positioning myself against the wall to prevent her Granny's fast fingers from finding their mark. Babe took a deep breath as the onslaught began.

"So where exactly have you been? I expected to hear from you. I can't believe I have a daughter that runs off to Heaven knows where, no word to anyone, and then comes home looking like a completely different person. I deserve an explanation young lady." Her mother was looking at Steph, but her eyes kept darting to one of the kitchen cabinets.

"Mom, I had to take care of some business. That is all you need to know about why I was gone. I am back now. That's what matters." Babe looked back at me. I winked at her and put my arm around her waist. I wanted it to be a comfort, but also I wanted to be able to pull her out of harm's way if things started to be thrown. "I've moved in with Carlos. While I was away, I realized what I want my life to be. I know who I want to build a life with and eventually start a family with. And that is Carlos." Helen started to interrupt, but Steph continued. "I know that you always thought that I would be with Joe. But we just aren't right together. It is not that I don't love Joe and think he is a great person, but I am not in love with him and he is not the right person for me."

Helen didn't say a word; she just walked over to the cabinet she had been eyeing, pulled out a bottle and took a long drink. She put the bottle back, turned to look at us and said, "Who wants coffee cake?"

Steph let out a nervous laugh and her Grandma Mazur gave her a hug and then put her hand on my arm. "Welcome to the family you big hunk of a man. You know…" she winked, "we share everything in this family." She let out a wicked little laugh and went over to help Helen plate up the cake.

I leaned down and whispered in Steph's ear. "I'm proud of you Babe. But there is one thing you need to know. There is no way in hell you are ever going to leave me alone with your Granny. That woman scares the shit out of me."

Steph leaned her head back against my chest and smiled up at me. "I guess eventually we will have to write that in the vows." She laughed.

I leaned down and kissed her. "I will insist on it."


	11. Chapter 11

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. So now we are getting into a part of the sorry that facilitates the ending I have envisioned. I am just hoping that my mind has not taken me down too twisted of a path. Not in this chapter, but upcoming ones. Please keep reviewing and being honest with me. I appreciate it and I hope you enjoy it.

Chapter 11

Ranger's POV

The next three weeks went smoothly. There had been no word from Alverez, but unfortunately , we still couldn't find the bastard either.

Babe and Lester spend their days bringing in skips. Lester had only broken his nose once and two of his finger, so he considered himself lucky. Of course Steph felt horrible and continued to try to get Lester off the hook and go on her own. Every time she suggested it, we all said "NO" in unison.

This morning started as all the previous ones had since Steph moved in. We made love when we woke. I went to the gym while she fell back asleep for an hour. We then showered together, got dressed and she headed out the door with Lester and I went to my office. I was just finishing up a conference call with the Miami and Boston offices when Tank knocked on my door.

"Enter."

"Ranger, a package just came with Bomber's name on it. There is no return address."

I stood then and looked down at my desk. I should have known the silence wouldn't last for long.

"Have you scanned it for explosives?"

"Yeah. Its clean."

"Who delivered it?"

"UPS."

I got out my cell phone and dialed Babe's number.

"Yo" It usually made me smile when she answered the phone that way, but today I wasn't in a smiling mood.

"Babe, are you expecting a package to be delivered here?" I tried to keep my voice sounding indifferent, but the more time I shared with Steph, the harder that was becoming.

There was I long pause. "I don't think ….OH yes I am. I forgot all about it. I'm sorry, I should have told someone."

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Do you mind me asking what it is?" I didn't want to push her. I understood if she wanted to keep some things private. Lord knows I did.

"It is my…" She started to whisper, "birth control pills." Her voice returned to normal volume then and I heard Lester start to laugh in the back ground. "I can get them cheaper that way."

I then heard smacking sound and Lester say "HEY" as I assumed Babe gave him a silent command to mind his own business.

"You just need to let he guys at the monitoring station know next time that you are expecting something. We are all still on high alert." I turned my back to Tank then. "I miss you Babe. See you when you get home." I hung up before she could say anything.

I turned back to Tank. "It's cleared. Give it to Ella to take up to seven with the mail. Anything new come up on the sweep today?"

Tank just shook his head. "Tony has been playing this game as long as we have. If he wants to disappear, that is exactly what he is going to do."

And I knew that to be true, but I was still hoping he would stick his toe out somewhere. "Just keep looking. I'll be going over the quarterlies with the new numbers man for the rest of the afternoon. Hold my calls."

I then sat back down in my chair, leaned back and closed my eyes. I realized that even with this threat hanging over our heads, I was happier than I had ever been in my life. I had always had long range goals when it came to the business, but my personal life was moment by moment. Now I found myself, when I had downtime, thinking about my future with Steph. I had meant what I had said to her in New Orleans. I wanted to have a family with her; when we were married. But there was time. I didn't want to rush. And it wasn't that I was unsure about Steph. It was more that I didn't want to scare her away.

There was another knock on my door and my new accountant stuck his head in. It was going to be a long afternoon.

Stephanie's POV

"What are you hitting me for?" Lester laughed, rubbing his arm where I had slapped him.

"Quit making fun of me. There is nothing funny about me being a responsible adult." Who likes to have lots and lots of hot sex with Batman. I didn't add that out loud, though I'm sure it was implied.

"Your selective modesty is funny Beautiful. I can't help it." We had been parked in front of the bond office after picking up our latest FTAs. It had been busy, and my bank account was very happy because of it.

Lester pulled out into traffic. "Who's up to bat?"

I opened the first file in the stack. "Stanly Noonan. Forty two year old mechanic. He was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon and indecent exposure."

Lester laughed. "Let's just hope what he was exposing wasn't the deadly weapon." I rolled my eyes and smacked him again. "You keep hitting me Beautiful and I might have to take you out back and give you a dose of your own medicine."

I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. "You want me to pass that plan along to my boyfriend?" I sang the last two words and the smile left his face.

"You not only have selective modesty, but a selective sense of humor too." He smiled again. "So where do you expect to find Mr. Noonan?"

"He works at Trenton Transmissions." I was looking up the address when Lester did a u-turn, sending horns honking in every direction.

"I know where that is at." And we were off.

When we arrived at the unassuming brick building, only one of the five bay doors was open. We got out of the SUV and looked inside the garage. No one was there. Suddenly a wrench came flying across the room, narrowly missing Lester's head.

"What the hell?" Lester grabbed me and pulled me to the ground. We raised our head and saw a pair of naked legs running towards us. Lester grabbed me and pulled me so I was behind him and we crouched in front of one of the closed bay doors. "Mr. Noonan. We work for Vincent Plum. You missed your court date." We heard more things being thrown at the door.

"I don't believe you. You work for Stella's husband. That woman is a witch. She just left. She took my fucking clothes again. Why would she do that?" Lester and I tried to keep a straight face, but no such luck.

I thought maybe I could calm him down a little. "Mr. Noonan? We just need you to come down and reschedule your court date."

Suddenly he was screaming. "There is a woman out there with you. She can't see me like this. When women see me naked, they won't leave me alone." I rolled my eyes. Like I hadn't heard that one before.

Lester leaned over and whispered, "I think we need to gas him. I will distract him. Do you think you can stay low, and sneak around the cars to get behind him?"

I retrieved my pepper spray from my bag and got ready to move as soon as Lester created a diversion.

"Mr. Noonan, we really need to get this taken care of. My partner will stay outside if that helps." He stood then and I slowly started to make my way around the cars and equipment to get behind Noonan. Suddenly I heard a swish through the air and something metal hit the wall.

"Son of a bitch." I heard Lester mutter. In response, Noonan continued to throw objects at the door, followed by a string of profanity from my very eloquent partner.

I was able to sneak behind a very naked Stanly Noonan and I positioned myself far enough away so he couldn't reach me, but close enough so my spray would be effective. I rose to a standing position and cleared my throat.

Stanly Noonan stood about five feet five inches. He had Ronald McDonald colored red hair, which extended in tufts over his whole body. He weight about 240, and at least from the back there was nothing remotely attractive about him. I was internally laughing at how self deluded he was that women wouldn't leave him alone, until he turned around. I was momentarily stunned by, what could best be described, as the third leg that hung down between this other two. I had never in real life seen a man that well endowed. I couldn't take my eyes off of it. It was like I was hypnotized. The only thing that brought me out of it was a sharp pain and a thudding sound as Stanly Noonan threw a socket wrench and hit me in the head.

I raised my spray and got a direct hit to his face just as my vision went black. When I woke up, I was on a gurney. Lester was standing over me, a half smile on his face. But there was worry in his eyes.

"What happened to our plan Beautiful? You were a little slow on the draw."

I looked at him, trying to comprehend what had happened in my now foggy head. "He studded the hell out of me. Did you see the size of that man's dick?"

This sent a fit of hysterical laughter through Lester. But it suddenly came to a stop when Ranger's Porsche pulled to the curb. He calmly walked over to me. Lester suddenly stood at attention.

"Report." Ranger barked at Lester.

"Steph was hit in the head by an object thrown by our FTA. The paramedics want to transport her to the hospital for a CT and observation." Lester looked down at me then and winked.

"Babe? What happened?" There was so much worry in his eyes, that I probably should have used more tact, but my head hurt, so I just blurted out the quickest and simplest explanation I could.

"A short fat man with a really big dick hit me in the head with a socket wrench." The paramedics were putting my in the ambulance, but as I was being wheeled away, I could hear Ranger and Lester's laughter trailing behind me.


	12. Chapter 12

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Please don't hate me. 

Chapter 12

Stephanie's POV

If you had told me three months ago, when I was on my way to New Orleans, that I would be living a life of domestic bliss with Batman, I probably would have shot you. But here I was, three months after my fateful trip down south and Ranger and I were living a very happy, domesticated life. And I was loving every minute of it.

I got my excitement during the day with Lester. We still hadn't heard anything from Tony, so I was assigned a bodyguard 24-7. But as far as company goes, I couldn't have asked for anyone better than Lester. We had become very good friend. We had been through a lot over our time as partners, and besides Ranger, he was probably the person I was closet to.

Ranger had been on assignment for a week now. When he told me he had to leave, I didn't ask questions. He had been so open with me, that I figured when he kept something from me, there was a reason. That was a big step for me. I must admit how proud I was of myself. I had done a lot of growing up lately. As the days dragged on I was missing him more. I especially missed him last night, after Lester and I had had a very bad day.

When we picked up our files, Connie was smiling and told us we should do the one on top first, so she could have the rest of the afternoon free. I opened the file and laughed. Mooner had missed another court date.

We pulled up to Mooner's house and knocked. He came to the door looking very pale and sweaty. When he saw me, his face dropped.

"Dude, did I miss another one. Damn." He slowly shoved his feet into his slippers and walked to the SUV.

"You aren't looking too good Mooner. Are you feeling ok?" I was concerned. Mooner was never tan, but his color today looked ghostly.

"Yeah, I think I might have ate some bad Chinese last night. I think it was last night." He stepped into the car and we headed towards the station.

About three blocks from our destination, I heard Mooner mutter, "Dude" and then he proceeded to throw up in the back seat. I looked at Lester and we both immediately rolled down the windows. We got him to the station and passed him off, telling him that Connie would be there soon to bail him out again.

Lester and I walked back to the SUV and looked at each other. Neither of us wanted to have to deal with what was in there.

"We could call Tank and tell him it broke down and let him deal with it." Lester looked at me like that was a viable option. I liked Tank too much to leave him with this.

"We can be mature about this. Let's just take it to a carwash, hose it out and then buy massive amount of beer for later."

Lester shrugged his shoulders and we got in, driving the five blocks to the car wash with our heads out the windows.

It took us an hour and a half to get everything cleaned up. We then went to pick up pizza and beer because we determined that we had put up with enough for the day. Unfortunately when we got back to seven, we realized that it wasn't bad Chinese that Mooner had had, but it was the stomach flu. It hit Lester first and I called Bobby to come and take him back to his apartment on four.

"How are you feeling?" Bobby asked me after checking on Lester who was praying to the porcelain God.

"I'm tired and kind of sick to my stomach, but I've been that way for a few days. Maybe I gave it to Lester and not Mooner." I heard Lester get sick again and cringed.

"Well then fuck you both." I heard him weakly yell from the bathroom.

"I'll come and check on you in the morning. Get some sleep. Plan on staying in the building tomorrow, okay?" Bobby would have been a great MD, but he craved the excitement too much. He got the best of both worlds being the Rangeman Medic.

Bobby and Lester left and Ella came in to freshen up things for me. She then brought me some soup and saltines. I was lying on the couch and I must have fallen asleep because her kissing me gently on the forehead woke me.  
"I'm leaving now Stephanie. Why don't you go to bed and get some good rest. If you need anything, please just call." She was such a sweet woman.

I smiled up at her. "I will Ella, thank you for everything." I slowly rose to a sitting position as she left. That was when it hit me. I was running to the bathroom. And that was where I stayed all night.

I must have fallen asleep on the floor because I woke with a start to Bobby calling my name.

"I'm in here." I called. As soon as I sat up, the nausea hit me again. Bobby came in and placed a cool cloth on my neck. When I was done, he handed me a glass of water and when I had taken a few sips he carried me to bed.

"I have to go and get a few things Bomber. Stay right here, I'll be right back." He ran out of the room and I must have dosed off again while he was gone, because his cool hand on my cheek woke me again with a start.

"Shh. You're fine. You aren't running a temperature. That's good. How are you feeling?" He was kneeling beside the bed, trying to assess my state of being.

"I'm just so tired. I have been for a few days, but I thought it was just because Ranger was gone and I haven't been sleeping as well. And every time I move my stomach does flip flops." Just then I heard the door open the smell of bacon and eggs came floating into the bedroom. My stomach lurched into my throat and I feebly ran to the bathroom to throw up the little bit of water I had just had.

Bobby was right behind me, comforting me. "Make that smell go away. Please." I begged.

He hurried out of the room and I heard the door open again and then the smell of air freshener overpowered the other scents. He led me back to bed. He was looking at me, pursing his lips. "I think if you don't mind, I'm going to take some blood and make sure you aren't anemic." Ranger had been putting a lot of equipment into the clinic here in the building.

I nodded my head and Bobby opened a case that looked a lot like a tackle box. I looked way as he searched for a vein. Not that I'm a wimp or anything, I just didn't want to be sick again. Bobby was a master, it didn't hurt at all, and he said he was done before I even knew he had finished. He then went into the kitchen and grabbed a large bowl. He sat it on my nightstand. "Just in case, so you don't have to run to the bathroom. If you still can't keep anything down when I come back, I'd like to put in an IV. You look a little dehydrated." He then grabbed my hand and squeezed it. "I'll be back in a little while. Get some sleep." And I was before I even heard the door close behind him.

When I woke again, I heard whispering in the living room. I slowly got up, put on my robe and went to see who it was.

Lester and Bobby were standing close together, arguing. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but they stopped abruptly when they saw me.

"What are you doing out of bed Beautiful?" Lester still looked a little pale, but better than yesterday.

"I should be asking you the same thing." I took a step forward, but my stomach lurched again. There was nothing left for my body to get rid of, but I ran to the bathroom anyway. This time it was Lester who carried me back to bed. Bobby had set up a stand with an IV bag attached next to the bed.

"So how did my blood look? Am I running on Leaded or Unleaded?" I smiled and neither of them made a sound. Bobby quickly put the IV in my arm and started the fluids.

He then sat on the side of my bed and held my hand. Lester positioned himself at the foot of my bed, one hand rubbing my feet through the covers.

"You guys are scaring me. What's going on? Oh God is something wrong with Carlos?" Tears started to form in my eyes.

"No. Ranger is fine." Bobby took a deep breath and then squeezed my hand again. "You are a little anemic, but not enough to worry about. Stephanie," he paused, closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened them and smiled at me. "You're pregnant."

I looked to Lester who was smiling at me now too. I was happy. I didn't think I was ready, but as soon as I heard the words come out of Bobby's mouth I was ecstatic that I had Carlos' child growing inside me. But then I started to panic. Ranger and I had talked about this. We wanted this, but not this quickly. My eyes closed and I started to sob. All I could think was how mad he was going to be. I worried that he would think I did this on purpose.

"He's going to hate me." I sobbed out.

Lester moved to the other side of me on the bed. He started running his hands through my hair. "No Steph. He loves you. I have known Ric all my life. We have the same blood running through us. There is no way that the knowledge that you are carrying his child will make him feel anything but overjoyed."

I quickly looked at Bobby. "I've been taking my birth control pills this whole time. They wouldn't have an effect on the baby would they?"

Bobby smiled at me. "Where are they? I'll take them down to the clinic and pull up the specs on them to make sure, but I am sure it's fine." I pointed to the bathroom and Bobby went to retrieve them. He was gone for a few minutes and when he came back he had his blank face on. "Get some sleep Steph. I'll be up to check on you later. Santos can I talk to you outside for a minute?"

Lester gave me a kiss on the forehead and followed Bobby out of the room, closing the door behind them.

I didn't expect to have this reaction when I found out I was going to have a baby. But I think it was the fact that Ranger was the father, well that made it seem right.

Ranger POV

The mission itself had only taken me two days. Simple witness transport, but I had been stuck in debriefings for the rest of the week. I had just finished my last meeting when my phone rang.

"Talk."

"Ric?" Bobby had an edge of panic in his voice.

"Bobby what's wrong? Steph, is she okay?"

"Yeah," he paused. "She's okay. It's Alverez. He wasn't as far off the grid as we thought."

"What do you mean? Did he show up in Trenton?" Of course I was stuck here listening to bloated Generals congratulating themselves and Babe was in danger.

"Do you remember that package that was delivered for Bomber two months ago?"

"Yeah. The one from the online pharmacy right?" What was he getting at?

"They were from Alverez. He had substituted a placebo for Steph's meds. I pulled out the blister pack from the case and he wrote on the back, 'Be careful what you wish for Ric'." He stopped then my mind took a second to catch up.

"Did Steph find it?"

"No."

"Then how did you…..Oh God." Before I knew what I was doing, I was running through the halls of Pentagon to get to my car. "Don't let her know. Let her just think this was an accident. I'll act like you never told me. Just don't let her be alone. I'm on my way."

That sick son of a bitch. We had been taught to inflict maximum damage in the military. It wasn't enough for him to go after the woman I loved. He wanted to raise the stakes.

But all he really did was give me even more reason eliminate him. As painfully as possible.


	13. Chapter 13

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Thank you all for your comments. It helps me to hear from you so I know that I haven't gone off the reservation. Hope you enjoy this one.

Chapter 13

Ranger's POV

I made the three hour drive from DC to Trenton in an hour and a half. My mind was all over the place. I was trying to figure out what Alverez's next move was, but it kept going back to a very simple fact. Stephanie and I were going to have a baby.

I didn't want Steph to know the facts of how this came to be. I didn't want anything to taint her pregnancy. I just wanted to find the son of a bitch so I would know that they would both be safe and I could put this behind us. The immediate problem was I had to act surprised when Babe told me. Let's just hope that I can fall back on all my undercover experience to help me with that one. I pulled into the garage and Lester and Bobby were waiting for me in front of the elevator. They had been tracking me and knew I wouldn't want to wait for an update.

They walked over to my Porsche as I got out. I have never seen Lester look so angry. And trust me we had been through a lot of shit in our lives. Bobby's look was more disgusted.

"Report." My voice was actually shaking. Now that I was here, back home with Steph only seven stories up, the reality was hitting me like a ton of bricks.  
"We contacted Morelli to see if there had been any break ins at any of the Steph's medical offices. Right after we got back from New Orleans, the hospital's records office was broken into, but there were five files taken, none of which was Bomber's. I figure he just read the information and set up a decoy." Lester ran his hand over his face. He took a deep breath and continued. "We found an online retailer that sells novelty candy for things like baby showers and bachelorette parties. We assume that Alverez stole samples of Steph's brand of pills and kept the cases that go with them. We contacted the candy company and after applying a little pressure, they were able to find a special rush order for candy birth control pills in the exact color of Steph's prescription, sent to Anthony Alverez at a PO Box here in Trenton. The pharmacy web site gives examples of all their labeling, so he could have easily reproduced it. Tank is on the phone with the shipping company to figure out where the package was mailed from."

I was starting to feel unsteady on my feet. I put my hands on my knees and lowered my head.

"The thing is Ric, he could have very easily poisoned her and we would have had no idea. As unexpected and sadistic as this is, it could have been a lot worse." Bobby reached out and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"Did she come to you because she thought she was pregnant? She didn't even mention a chance of it to me." I slowly stood.

"We transported Mooner and he had the stomach flu. He got sick in the car, so needless to say I got the stomach flu. Steph wasn't feeling well and started to get sick too." Lester looked over to Bobby so he could finish.

"She complained of being tired, so I decided to check if she was anemic. She was slightly, but the blood test gave a positive pregnancy result. I just went up to check on her and try to fill in some of the time frame. She told me that she was a week late, but had had some spotting, so she really didn't think she was. Without an ultra sound and being that she has been on the placebo for about two months now, I would put her at about six week."

I was fighting back crying. I was having major conflicting emotion. There is nothing like feeling uncontrollable rage and euphoria all at the same time.

"Ric, she's scared to death that you are going to think she did this on purpose. She's afraid you are going to hate her." Lester put his hands in his pockets and looked down. "Are you going to fill her in on all of the details?"

He looked up at me and I could see some tears in his eyes. They had become so close over the past few months. Lester loved her. I knew he would never act on it, but I also knew that what was happening right now was killing him almost as much as it was me.

"I don't want her to ever know. I want this to be a happy time for her. Who else here knows what's going on?"

"Just Tank." Bobby's phone rang, cutting him off. "Yeah." He looked down. "Ok Ella, I will be right up. Is she still vomiting?" He smiled slightly. "Okay, thanks. We'll be right there."

"Is she okay?" I wanted to go to her, but I also wanted to delay my performance.

"She's fine. She just wants me to take the IV out. She hasn't gotten sick for about three hours now. That's a good thing."

I took a deep breath. "Okay, here's the plan. I just got back; you guys have said nothing to me. And you only know that by an act of medical probability, Steph and I are having a baby. We ran into each other on the elevator up. I want you guys in the next room when she tells me in case I can't pull off my part and she need to be calmed down. I will have her working here in the office from now on, so Lester you and Bobby's focus is finding that son of a bitch. When you do, he will be eliminated. And we are going to have a damn good time doing it." That brought smiles to both of their faces. We crossed the garage to the elevator and headed up to seven.

"Put you game face on Ric. Good luck man." Lester patted my back, but there was no humor in his voice.

Stephanie's POV

"He will be right up sweetheart. How are you feeling?" I hadn't told Ella yet. I wished that Bobby and Lester didn't know, but I had no control over that. I didn't want anyone else to know until I could tell Ranger. I just hoped that he wasn't too disappointed.

Just then the doors to the bedroom opened and Lester walked in. "Look who we found lurking in the elevator."

Ranger was right behind him followed by Bobby. His eyes grew wide as he saw the IV. "Babe? What's wrong?" He looked at Bobby. "Is she okay?"

Bobby patted his back. "She's fine, just a little dehydrated." He came over and took the IV out of my arm while Ranger came to the other side of the bed, sat down and held my hand. When he was done, Bobby looked at Lester. "Why don't we give these two some privacy." They started to walk out of the room and suddenly I didn't want to be alone with Ranger when I told him the news.

"Wait. Maybe you should stay in case he needs to be sedated." I laughed and they both came back to stand at the foot of the bed.

Ranger looked from his men back to me. "Babe. What's going on?" He looked so serious. I wanted to do this right, but I also wanted to break the news gently.

I sat farther up in the bed and put my hand on his face. I looked into his eyes and I suddenly knew that everything would be alright. I found the strength I was lacking in his beautiful eyes. Before I spoke, I said a silent prayer that the baby would have its Daddy's eyes.

"I love you Carlos. I got some news today that I hope you will be as happy about as I am. It was a surprise and I know that we wanted to wait." I paused for a second, took another deep breath and jumped. "Carlos, we're going to have a baby." A tear of pure joy ran down my cheek.

"What?" Ranger was smiling. All my worry seemed so stupid and frivolous. "Are you sure?" Ranger looked quickly between Bobby and me.

"Yeah, he's sure." I laughed and Ranger suddenly kissed me. He looked back to Lester and Bobby laughing.

"No sedation needed. OUT." They quickly left the room closing the door behind them. He started kissing me again and he placed his hand on my stomach.

"Are you sure you aren't mad. I would understand if you were. This kind of blows our plans out of the water." I didn't want him to have reality hit him with a 2x4 later.

"I love you Babe. And I love our baby. It obviously was meant to be." He then moved down to my stomach and started talking to our baby in Spanish.

"Papa te ama bebe. Que necesita para crecer fuerte y seguro para tu Mama y yo. Usted es una bendición de Dios y voy a hacer todo lo posible para mantenerlo seguro y Mama. Ahora vaya a dormir para bebes, porque tiene que demostrar mama lo mucho que la amo. (Daddy loves you baby. You need to stay safe and grow strong for your Mommy and me. You are a blessing from God and I will do everything I can to keep you and Mommy safe. Now go to sleep baby because Daddy needs to show Mommy how much I love her.) He kissed my stomach and then moved to position himself on top of me.

"I love you and the baby Babe. I am so happy. Our plans will just have to be accelerated a little, but for you and Junior down there, I would do anything." Ranger then kissed me, and it was a different kiss than we had ever shared before. It was as if we were sealing our future together. And as he made love to me, slowly, tenderly, all of the doubt that lingered and fear that had remained vanished. We had created a life from the love we shared. And for that moment at least, all was right with the world.


	14. Chapter 14

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Thank you all for your reviews. They mean a lot to me. I am really enjoying telling this story. I hope you enjoy the chapter.

Chapter 14

Ranger's POV

I couldn't sleep. It was as if a war was being fought inside my head. I was seething that Alverez had gotten to Steph, right under my nose. He had committed a crime so evil that I had no doubt any ounce of humanity Tony once had was now gone. But because of this action, the love that Stephanie and I had for each other had created a life. The thought of having a child with my Babe made me euphoric. I would start to let that take over and then I would be slammed with the reality that Tony's plan was for us to create a child, only to take it away for us; to take both of them away from me. That was when panic set in. And I don't do panic.

Steph was sound asleep. I didn't want to wake her, but I had work to do. I kissed her on the forehead as I slowly pulled my arm from under her. I sat up so I wouldn't jostle the bed and went into the bathroom, showered and dressed in the dark. Good think I didn't have to worry about walking out mismatched. I watched Babe for a minute. She seemed so peaceful and I wanted her to remain that way. I would do everything in my power to keep the truth of how our child came to be away from her.

I left the apartment and went down to five. I run a twenty four hour business, but at 3:00 in the morning, I was expecting to see my B team on staff. I got off the elevator and nodded to Wilson, one of my new guys, who was on the monitor desk. As I walked to my office I noticed the light on under the door to Tanks office. I knocked and then opened the door.

Tank, Lester and Bobby were all looking at individual laptops, each lost in their own intel gathering. When I entered they all looked up at me and nodded.

"How's Bomber?" Bobby asked. I assessed all their faces before I spoke. They looked haggard. I actually haven't seen them look this tired since our last Black Ops mission.

"She's sleeping. Have you guys been to bed yet?" I walked closer and looked at Lester's computer screen.

"We tried, but we all ended up back here." Lester took a long drink from his coffee cup. "We have exhausted all of our contacts and we're coming up empty. Some of them are starting to get pissy with the amount of times we've been checking in."

"I want you all to go and get some sleep. We're not going to get anywhere if we are all dead on our feet. Babe's safe here, and we can breathe for the time being."

They all stood and shut their laptops. "You need sleep too Ric. She's going to need you when she wakes up if we have a repeat of the morning sickness she had yesterday." Bobby gently reminded me of the reason we even found out all this mess had happened.

We all left Tank's office, the three of them heading towards the stairs to make their way down to four, me to the elevator to head up to seven. Before I could get on the elevator, Bobby ran over to me.

"She's going to need to try to eat something, and if she can't keep anything down, call me and I'll get her another IV. Keeping her hydrated is the most important thing. Call me if you need me." I patted Bobby on the back and got on the elevator.

When I opened the door to the bedroom, I suddenly felt very tired. I undressed and climbed into bed next to Steph. She was on her side facing away from me. I wrapped my arms around her and slid her back up against my chest.

"Are you ok?" She asked sleepily.

"I'm fine Babe. Just go back to sleep."

"I love you Carlos."

"I love you too Babe." I reached out and placed my hand on her stomach, pulling her even closer to me. "Both of you."

Stephanie's POV

I woke up feeling energized. Much to my surprise Ranger was still in bed, sound asleep beside me. I was able to gently roll out of his arms and out of bed without waking him. I think that was the first time ever.

I went into the bathroom, and started the shower. I got in and stood under the water and started talking to myself, kind of.

"Ok kiddo, Uncle Lester and Mommy have work to do today, so no using my stomach for punching bag."

I finished my shower, did my hair and makeup and slowly opened the door into the bedroom. Ranger was still sleeping. I watched him for a minute to make sure he was actually breathing. He was. The news that he was going to be a father must have taken more out of him than he let on.

I got dressed and went out to the kitchen. My stomach was still a little unsteady, so I decided not to risk it. I went over to Ranger's office and wrote a quick note.

_Carlos,_

_I went out with Lester to finish up some FTA's. Don't worry, I'll be fine._

_I forgot to tell you, but Bobby set up an OB appointment for me at 3:30 today. If you can make it and want to come, please call me and I'll come by here first and we can go together._

_Have a good day._

_I love you, Baby loves you._

_Stephanie_

I placed the note on the kitchen counter, grabbed my bag and keys and headed for the elevator to five. It was 9:30 and I figured Lester would be waiting, very impatiently for me.

I stepped off the elevator and Tank, Bobby and Lester were huddled together in front of the monitor station. Tank saw me first and smiled.

"Good Morning Bomber." He was smiling too much and I realized that they had told him of my condition.

I quickly closed the distance between me and them, hitting Lester and Bobby on their arms. "You told him. I told you not to say anything." I wasn't really mad, but I thought I could at least make them feel guilty.

"Sorry" They both said together, looking down at the floor.

I patted Lester on the back. "You ready to go?"

He looked at me confused. "Ready to go where?"

"To work silly. You know. You, me, finding idiots and hauling their stupid irresponsible asses to jail."

They all just stood there and looked at me like I was speaking Greek.

"What?"

Lester put his arm around me and pulled me to his side. For a second I thought that maybe this was more about detainment, than friendly affection.

"I was under the impression that you'd be working in the office from now on. Didn't Ranger talk to you about that?"

I looked up at him, narrowing my eyes. "Excuse me?"

Just then the elevator bell ringed and I turned to see Ranger quickly crossing the room to us. I wiggled out of Lester's grip and turned to face him, folding my arms across my chest. He stopped and looked down at me.

"Ranger, can I speak to you in your office for a minute?"

Ranger motioned his hand for me to lead the way. "Babe."

When we got into the office and he shut the door behind me I was all prepared to let him have it. Just because I was pregnant, that didn't mean he could dictate my life. I turned to confront him, but the look I found stopped me in my tracks.

He looked at me with panic in his eyes. I had never seen him that way. He started to walk towards me and I was backed up against his desk. He put his hands on either side of me and leaned me back slightly. I could tell he was trying to not let the panic in his eyes leak out into his voice.

"Please, Babe, don't ever leave like that again. When I woke and you weren't next to me or even in the apartment, my mind went down a very dark road." He leaned down and kissed me. He moved one of his hands behind my head and deepened the kiss. When we finally came up for air, the panic had disappeared from him.

"I'm sorry. I just wanted to let you sleep." I took a deep breath. "I need to get to work though. I want to get at least one of these files taken care of before my appointment." I pushed back against him so I could leave, but he didn't budge.

"Babe." I just looked at him with a silent _What._

He took a breath to steady himself. "I don't think that it is safe for you or Junior to be going after skips anymore. I would really prefer it if you worked here in the office." I knew it was out of worry, not a want for control, that he was making this request.

"Just let me finish up my outstanding files and then I will be on desk duty." He still didn't move. "I'll be fine. Lester will be with me the whole time." He still didn't move. "Don't make me shoot you."

A slow smile formed on his face. "Fine. But I'll be going with you, not Lester."

But I wanted to work with Lester. I had had a lot of fun over the past few months. "No. I'm working with Lester. I am sure you have things to do here."

He stood back then, resolve covering both our faces. He turned, opened the door and walked back to the threesome standing by the monitors. I followed, feeling as if I had just won a battle. But I should have known not to underestimate Batman.

"Santos, looks like we are going to need the Escalade today. I'm going with you guys."

Lester gave me a look that reminded me of one Mary Lou gave when we were kids and my Mom would tag along with us to the mall.


	15. Chapter 15

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about Tony, he is just lying low for a while.

Chapter 15

Ranger's POV.

The three of us stood in silence in the elevator on the way down to the garage. Lester and I were at the back, looking at each other out of the corner of our eyes. I was trying to communicate to him to bow out and stay behind, and he was probably doing the same to me. Babe was standing in front of us, ignoring our silent exchange.

When the doors opened she yelled "Shotgun" and ran to the Escalade. Lester sighed and threw me the keys. When we got to the car, Steph was already in her seat with her head back, looking a little pale. I climbed in and grabbed her hand. Lester climbed in behind me.

"You okay Babe? You're looking a little pale."

She turned her head and smiled at me. "Yeah, I just didn't eat, and it is starting to catch up with me."

"Babe." I didn't want to lecture her. But I remembered what Bobby said, so I pulled out and went straight to McDonalds drive through. I looked at the menu and tried to order the healthiest thing I could. "A fruit and yogurt parfait, an Egg McMuffin and a large orange juice. " I looked at Lester in the mirror. "You want anything?"

"Coffee."

"And two large coffees."

Babe grabbed my arm. "I want coffee too."

I looked at her, smiled and place my hand on her stomach. "Sorry Babe. I don't want my kid coming out wired." She huffed and we pulled forward.

I passed the coffee back to Lester, put mine in the cup holder and handed Steph her food. I was really going to have to convince her to eat better.

I looked at Lester in the rear view mirror. "So where to?"

Steph pulled a file out of her bag and handed it back to him. She was eating her food slowly, but her color was coming back and she smiled at me in between bites.

"Roberta Evans. 572 Elm Street. She was a first time offender. Arrested for animal neglect, destruction of property and assaulting an officer. She seems to like Chihuahuas." Lester and I exchanged a look in the mirror that could only be interpreted as "OH CRAP." I checked the side mirrors and following two cars behind was Bobby and Tank.

"Well then she is going to love you two." Steph laughed and as I was at a stop light, I leaned over and kissed her.

When we were moving again, I looked over to her as she was finishing her last bite of yogurt. "I didn't go over the rules for today with you Babe." She looked at me like she was going to protest, but my return look stopped her. "You don't have a choice. Rules or we go home right now. First rule, you are to stay between Lester and I at all times. Rule two. If we tell you to stay in the car, you stay in the car. And finally, you are to be careful and not get hurt."

Steph shrugged her shoulders. "I will agree whole heartedly to comply with the first two rules and do my best with the third one. Is that okay?"

Lester laughed. "Well with you beautiful that is really all we can ask for."

Steph smiled and when I looked at her now, she was positively glowing. "How is everything settling in your stomach Babe?" I reached over again and place my hand on her stomach again.

She placed her hand on top of mine. "So far so good."

I looked back at Lester in the mirror one more time and he nodded as he put his game face on. I grabbed Steph's hand, kissed it and let my own fall into place.

Roberta Evan's house was in the part of town where residential and industrial meet. The houses around hers appeared either vacant, or occupied by meth heads. But even through closed windows, we heard the noise. I looked back at Lester as he muttered, "Oh this is going to be fun."

Stephanie's POV

When we got out of the car, the barking coming from the house was almost deafening. I positioned myself between Batman and Robin and we approached the door. As we got closer to the door, I suddenly had a big problem.

Even though the door and windows were closed, the smell was overwhelming. I stumbled back slightly and whispered, "Oh this is not good."

Ranger looked back at me as my stomach lurched and I turned and tossed my McMuffin in the weeds next to the walk way. I recovered slightly as Ranger moved behind me, putting his hand around my waist. "Babe."

I stood up straight, trying not to breathe through my nose. "I'm fine, let's just get this over with." The closer we got to the house the worse it got. Lester ran up the stairs and knocked. The door opened a crack and peeking out was a woman that was just under five feet tall and must have weighted close to 300lbs. She had salt and pepper hair that looked like it hadn't been combed or washed in a week and the stench that seeped through the crack made me fall back and get sick again. Ranger started to follow, but I motioned for him to continue. I just wanted to go home so I could throw up in peace.

"Ms Evan's we represent Vincent Plum Bond Agency. You missed your court date. We need to take you in and get you rescheduled." Lester was breathing in shallow breathes and talking as fast as he could.

"Oh dear, I guess I did." Just then Roberta opened her door and a flood of Chihuahuas came pouring out of the house. "My babies" she screamed and started hitting Ranger and Lester. "Get them. This is all your fault."

I heard Lester yell, "What the hell!" I looked over and Ranger and Lester both shaking their legs and each had at least two dogs attached. Ranger had managed to cuff Roberta though and he was kicking dogs gently out of the way to get her down the walk.

I was trying to keep the dogs out of the street, but my stomach was being difficult and I was suddenly very tired. I hadn't even known he was there, but Bobby was at my side then.

"Bomber, you okay?" He placed his hand on my face and it was cool. It felt really good.

"I think so. It's just the smell." My stomach convulsed again, but there was nothing left that could escape.

Tank was there too, and Ranger passed Roberta off to him. "Humane society is on their way, so are the police."

"We need to get her back home." Bobby looked up at Ranger.

"Come on Babe let's get you home. Bobby you come with us, Lester and Tank stay here with Ms. Evan and wait for the cops. Try to get the dogs back in the house." Ranger guided me to the passenger seat and helped me in. He laid it back and kissed my forehead while fastening my seat belt. "Just close your eyes Babe."

He closed the door and I heard him instruct Lester to make sure all the dogs were out of our path.

Bobby was in the back seat and Ranger was inching his way forward, being careful not to his anything. When we were clear, he sped up and cracked my window. The cool air hitting my face helped to settle my stomach down.

I fell asleep in the car and woke slightly when Ranger lifted me out and carried me to the elevator. As we were getting in I heard Bobby say "I'll grab my bad and some fluids and meet you up there. Get her in bed and comfortable."

I pressed myself into Ranger's chest and he kissed the top of my head. When we got to seven, Ranger sat me on the bed. He helped me undress and grabbed one of his t-shirts and gently placed it over my head. I had just gotten settled under the covers when there was a knock on the door and Bobby came in.

Ranger sat beside me on the bed and ran his hand over my hair as Bobby inserted the IV. "I want you to sleep Babe."

"Don't forget about my appointment this afternoon. Are you going to go with me?" I really wanted him there, but I knew he was a busy man.

"I wouldn't miss it."

I started to drift off, but a funny thought came into my head and I couldn't resist.

"Carlos?"

"Yeah Babe." He leaned down and kissed my forehead.

"Does this mean that you won't be getting the Baby a puppy?"

He laughed. "Si Senorita."


	16. Chapter 16

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich except those previously noted. Thank you all again for your reviews. I appreciate it. This is a dark one. I know I go from yappy dogs to this, but you all knew it was coming.

Chapter 16

Stephanie's POV

My appointment went well. When we got back to seven, Ranger placed the baby's ultrasound picture on the refrigerator with a magnet he had bought at the gift shop in the hospital. I was surprised by his reaction. Not that it was a bad thing, but I almost felt like he was trying too hard.

I was starving and Ranger called down to Ella for some dinner. I decided that I was going to take a bath while we waited.

"Remember Babe, don't get the water too hot." I rolled my eyes as I headed out of the room. I liked that he was excited and wanted to take an active role, but something just had my spidey senses working overtime.

I started the bath and poured in some of Ranger's shower gel to create bubbles. I climbed in and let my mind drift. So much had happened in the past four months. I had gone to New Orleans, met Alverez, started a relationship with Carlos, moved in with him and now I was carrying his child. That is when my mind started to put pieces together.

I went back to just yesterday, when I and found out I was pregnant. I replayed Bobby and Lester telling me. Bobby has seemed different after returning from getting my pills to take to with him. And then there was Ranger's reaction. Like I said, it was sweet, but over the top. Very unRanger like. The three of them in the room last night, the timing of Ranger's return. I mean I know he is Batman, but he's not that good.

I went back to Bobby's face when he exited the bathroom yesterday. I got out of the tub and crossed to my cosmetic bag. I had the unopened case of birth control pills in there. I was standing there, covered in bubbles looking at it. I started to get cold, so I returned to the bath, turning the case over in my hands. I opened it and for the first time notice that it appeared a little different than the pills I would get delivered at my old apartment. They seemed faded in color. I popped the blister pack out of the case and turned it over. I started to shake as I read what was written.

_Ric and Stephanie_

_Sitting in a tree_

_F U C K I N G_

_First come love _

_Then comes marriage _

_Then I get to kill the bitch _

_And torch the baby carriage._

I felt my body start go into shock. I looked at the package again and couldn't get my mind to believe what I was seeing. This is a joke right? That's what I kept saying to myself. I put my free hand on my stomach and started to sob uncontrollably as the realization hit me.

I felt violated. This sick bastard was pulling the strings in our lives. He had tainted what was supposed to be the best, most perfect thing to ever happen to us.

I didn't realize I was screaming until Ranger came running into the room.

"Babe. What is it?" He knelt down beside the tub and turned my face toward his. "Are you hurt?"

I couldn't speak, I just held the package up to him and continued to sob. The look on his face confirmed what my instincts were trying to tell me. Finally I was able to speak, if only in a whisper.

"You knew. Last night, you knew what he did." Ranger put his hands on my face and held my eyes to his.

"This doesn't change how I feel about the baby. This is our miracle Babe. It doesn't matter how. All that matters is that it is. I love you Stephanie. I love our baby. I will keep you safe. I am so sorry that I didn't prevent him from getting to you, but I will not say I'm sorry that you are carrying my child." He kissed me and I tried to calm down, but I couldn't.

He helped me out of the bath and wrapped his robe around me. I tried to walk, but my legs started to give out. Ranger pulled me into his arms and carried me to the bed. We heard the door open and the smell of chicken noodle soup drifted into the room.

"Ella can you come here please?" Ranger was setting next to me, but I was only vaguely aware he was there.

I just kept whispering over and over, hoping it could hear me "I'm so sorry."

Ranger's POV

Ella entered the room and I quickly crossed to her. She looked confused and concerned.

"Ella I need you to stay here with Stephanie while I go into the other room to make a phone call. I'll explain everything later."

I watched as Ella climbed in bed next to Babe, wrapped her arms around her and started to rock and sing to her.

I went into the living room and called Bobby.

"Yo."

"I need you, Lester and Tank up here now. You will need to bring your med kit and a sedative for Steph. She knows." I hung up and went back into the bedroom.

I knelt down in front of her, but her eyes wouldn't focus on me. She just kept whispering something, her arms wrapped tightly around herself.

I leaned in closer and I heard her repeating "I'm so sorry" over and over. If it was Alverez's goal to hurt me, he was doing a fucking fantastic job of it.

My men entered then. Bobby came to stand behind me and moved to give him access to Babe.

He got right in front of her and touched her face. "Stephanie, its Bobby. Can you hear me?" She didn't respond. This is what I had tried so hard to prevent. Bobby took a pen light and shined it in her eyes. She blinked two quick blinks and then looked directly at him. "Bomber?"

Steph suddenly sat straight up in bed, breaking free of Ella's arms. There was pure rage in her eyes and she looked wildly around the room.

"No", she said while sharply shaking her head. She looked at me then and said "No" one more time before she completely fell apart. My legs almost fell out from under me when she half screamed and half sobbed, "Why?"

Bobby looked back at me then. "Ric you need to hold her down. We need to get her calmed down. This is not good for her or the baby."

I ran over and took Ella place beside her. Babe clung to me, burying her face in my chest and sobbing. I held her close, while trying to help Bobby get access to her arm so he could give her the sedative. Suddenly I was worried about how what he was giving her would affect the baby.

"Wait." I said, making eye contact with Bobby.

"I called her OB on the way up. He told me what to give her and how much. He said this was safer than letting her continue to be this upset." I gave a quick nod and Bobby carefully put the needle into her arm and injected the sedative.

Almost instantly she relaxed. She fought it though. I pulled her away from my chest so I could look at her. She looked up at me pleading.

"Just promise me you don't hate us?" I leaned down and roughly kissed her.

Her eyes started to close as I whispered in her ear, "I love you. I love the baby. Please never doubt that." And then she was sound asleep.

I adjusted myself on the bed, so I was setting up and Babe's head was in my lap. After brushing the hair out of her face, I looked around the room.

Ella was in the corner, tears running down her face. Tank was standing next to her, and I assumed that during Bobby and my struggle to get Steph calmed down, he had filled her in on everything. Lester was at the end of the bed, gently rubbing Steph's feet. He was looking at her and a single tear rolled down his cheek. Bobby was taking deep breaths, trying to calm himself down. After closing his eyes tightly for a second, he sat on the bed and started to check Babe's vitals.

Bobby reached in his bag and pulled out a device that I had seen earlier in the doctor's office. He motioned to Lester, "Grab a blanket out of the closet", then he looked at me. "I got this today. Do you mind if I check on the baby?"

"Please." That was all I could manage to say.

Lester carefully spread the blanket over Steph. Bobby opened the robe over her stomach, moving the blanket down only far enough so he could find the baby's heartbeat. The speaker crackled as he turned it on. He started to search Steph's stomach. Suddenly the familiar sound I had heard earlier in the day filled the room. Bobby looked at me and smiled. "Sounds fine." He pulled the blanket back up over her and stepped back.

I looked over to Ella. "I'm so sorry to put you through this. Why don't you go back to your place and we will call you if we need you."

Ella crossed the room to us. She leaned down and kissed Stephanie on the forehead and then put her hand on my cheek. "God bless all three of you. If I can help in anyway, please let me know." She turned then and left the room.

I waited until I heard the front door close to speak. Tank, Lester and Bobby had moved closer to surround the bed. I kept my voice as calm as possible, trying not to disturb my world sleeping in my lap.

"I want him found. And I want him dead. You turn over every rock, you talk to anyone he's even shared air with. That piece of shit is worm food do you understand me?" They all had their arms crossed in front of their chests and rage covering their faces.

Tank broke a moment of silence that followed. "When we find him, do you want to do it, or do you just want it take care of?"

A small smile came to my lips. "You boys have as much fun as you want, but I want to end it."

The all turned then and left the room.

For the rest of the night I didn't move. I didn't sleep. I just listen and watched Babe breath. I prayed that she found peace in her dreams at that moment and I could bring that to her life as soon as possible. I didn't know if she had heard me before the sedative took over, but as soon as she was awake, I was going to make her know that having any feeling for her and our child other than love was something she never had to worry about.


	17. Chapter 17

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I am sorry that the last chapter was such a downer, but it had to be done. Thank you for all your reviews.

Chapter 17

Stephanie's POV

I woke up feeling disoriented. I felt Ranger's hand on my back and felt his steady breathing under me. My face felt swollen and my stomach empty. I started to move, and as I did, Ranger's hand ran down my face.

"Babe."

I turned so I could look up at him. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair was a mess and his five o'clock shadow was working overtime.

"Babe, can I get you anything?"

I just shook my head.

"Do you want to talk about this?"

I pushed myself up to a half sitting position. I put my hand on his face and ran my finger along one of the dark circle under his eye.

"I just wish you would have told me. I understand why you didn't but I needed to know." I started to cry again, and he put his hands on my face.

"This doesn't change anything. You know that right?" I closed my eyes and looked down. He put his hand under my chin and raised my face to his. He leaned down and gently kissed me and then pulled back. "Babe, look at me." I opened my eyes and what I saw there gave me peace. "I love you. I want to build my life with you. And I love that baby inside you. That is all that matters. The only thing I want you to think about is keeping you and the baby healthy. You're both mine now Babe and you know how I like things that are mine taken care of." He half smiled, but I knew he was serious.

I nodded my head. "Carlos?"

"Yeah Babe."

"I am starving."

He kissed me on the top of the head, slid out of the bed and went into the kitchen. I heard the microwave beep and in no time he was back with a tray filled with Ella's chicken noodle soup, and saltine crackers. It tasted so good. He went into the bathroom to shower and get ready for his day. I wanted him to sleep for awhile, but I knew him well enough that that was not going to happen.

He came out wrapped in a towel, freshly shaven and smelling fantastic. I stopped eating long enough to devour him with my eyes as he got dressed. He turned and smiled at me as he tucked in the shirt and his cell phone rang on the nightstand. He crossed and picked it up.

"Yo."

He looked down and smiled at me.

"Yeah, that is probably a good idea. Give her about ten minutes though." He hung up the phone, sat on the bed and leaned over to kiss me. "You got some visitors coming up. Are you done?" He pointed at the tray and I nodded. He picked it up and took it to the kitchen as I slowly got out of bed and went in to take a quick shower and make myself presentable. As I was letting the warm water wash over me I decided that there was no way I would let Alverez take this away from Ranger and I. I may only have one child and the fact that it is going to be with Carlos was such a miracle. No, I was going to continue to believe that this baby was the most wonderful surprise I could have ever asked for.

I whispered "Mommy and Daddy love you sweetheart." Then I quickly finished and wrapped a towel around myself as I got out.

I blew dry my hair, did my makeup the best I could with my eyes being so swollen and got dressed in jeans and a sweater. I opened the doors into the living room and standing there looking sheepish were my boys.

I didn't say anything; I just walked to them, giving them each a silent hug. When I had finished hugging Bobby he took my hand as I pulled away.

"How are you feeling?"

I smiled at him and squeezed his hand. "Better." I then looked to Lester. "I'm sorry partner, but I'm not going to be able to finish up those files with you. I think its best, at least for now, that I stay close to home." I hated the thought of being confined. But it wasn't just me anymore.

Relief seemed to wash over all of them and they all actually smiled.

I got serious and looked them each in the face. "But no more secrets guys. I mean it. I need to know what is going on." They all silently acknowledged me. "Have you found out anything else?"

Lester looked at Ranger who nodded at him once, giving him permission to continue. "Nothing Beautiful. But we will find him. I promise."

I sighed and looked at Ranger. "Well since these guys are on top of that, you and I have another matter we have to attend to."

He looked at me and cocked his head to the side. "Babe?"

"We have to tell our families about their new addition." Tank tried to hide a smile, Bobby looked up at the ceiling with his shoulders shaking in a silent laugh and Lester paused for a beat, looked at Ranger and laughed.

Ranger looked at Lester and a half smile came across his face. "I don't know what you're laughing about. You know what this means don't you? Family dinner."

Lester stopped laughing instantly and looked at the floor "Shit."

Ranger's POV

Steph had decided that we would tell her family at dinner the next night and left it up to me as to how I wanted to tell my parents. I decided that I would call them to set up a time when they could meet Babe and we'd tell them then about the baby.

The problem is I don't call my family often. Maybe once every three months or so. I hadn't called them since we got back from New Orleans and I knew that as soon as my Mother heard my voice she would know that something was up.

"Bueno" My Dad answered.

"Hey Papa. How are you?" I tried to sound casual, but something about talking to my parents always made me revert back to being a twelve year old.

"Carlitos. How are you son? We haven't heard from you in so long. How are things?" My father was always easier to talk to than my mother. We talked business and cars, occasionally women, but not often.

"Things are going well Sir. I was hoping that we could all get together in the very near future. I have some news to share." I was hoping my Mama wasn't home. She would attempt to drag the information out of me now. I had often thought of hiring her as an interrogator after some of our phone conversations.

"One minute Son." He put his hand over the mouthpiece. Shit. That meant only one thing. I heard him yell even though the phone on his end was partially covered. "Teresa. Carlitos is on the phone. Pick up mi amore."

Suddenly I heard my father's hand move from the phone and my mother pick up the extension.

"Carlitos. How are you? I've missed you." She sounded so happy to hear from me, I started to feel guilty that I hadn't called.

"I'm good Mama. I was hoping we could plan a dinner soon. I have some news to share and I don't want to do it over the phone." I hoped that she would respect my wished, but then again I should have known better.

"Carlitos, you are not going to say something like that and make me wait to know are you? I am not a young woman anymore." She was playing it up and I knew it.

"Well then Mama, you better set a date soon so you won't let the suspense get to you." I laughed.

"Well I will call the family tonight. Will the day after tomorrow work for you?" As soon as I hung up, the phone lines in the greater Trenton/Newark area would be on fire.

"That will be fine. I have to go now, but I will see you soon." I hung up before she pushed farther.

I opened my cell phone and pressed Lester's number on speed dial.

"Yo"

"I just got off the phone with my parents. Dinner will be day after tomorrow. She will be calling to try to get information from you. You tell her anything, I'll be serving your balls as appetizers."

"No problem. She will probably just call my Mom and have her pass along the invite." I heard a beep. "Just a second I have another call." There was a pause. "Shit. Speak of the devil. What should I say?"

I laughed, "Well before you say anything, just remember I can change you into a soprano with one shot."

Lester sighed. "Shit."


	18. Chapter 18

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Thank you all for sticking with me through those last couple of tough chapters. I appreciate your reviews so much. I hope you enjoy some quality family time.

Chapter 18

Ranger's POV

I woke up the next morning with Babe wrapped tightly against my chest. The night had been spent with the most beautiful scenery I could have ever asked for. Babe riding me, looking down at me with a wicked grin and then arching her back as I pushed even deeper inside her. Watching water run down her body as she knelt in front of me in the shower; her eyes looking up at me through her thick lashes as she let her mouth tease and taste me. Then finally looking down at her under me. My body protecting and sheltering hers and as I moved inside her as she kept whispering my name.

I was a happy man. I had to work though. Not that I couldn't pawn it off on Tank, but I had been doing too much of that lately. I kissed Babe and rolled away from her carefully depositing her on my pillow. I went in and took a shower, smiling as I replayed the evening. I doubted that I would get to repeat it after an evening spent with her family. I had decided though that I was not going to let them upset Steph. We had been through too much already and still had a long road ahead. I refused to have them add any extra and unwelcome baggage.

I left the bathroom and Babe was looking at me, her head still on the pillow, a sweet smile covering her face.

"Good Morning." I said as I crossed to her. I knelt in front of her and kissed her as her arm wrapped around my neck and pulled me closer to her.

She pulled back and smiled. "Don't you even think about ditching me tonight Batman. I broke the bat signal and told Tank he was in charge of Cat Woman and the Joker tonight."

I quickly kissed her again and stood up. "Ok, put if the Penguin shows up, I'm out of there. That guy scares the shit out of me." I smiled and went to get dressed. She was in the shower when I exited my walk in closet, dressed in my usual ensemble. I went to my nightstand and grabbed my watch and phone. I walked into the bathroom and Steph stuck her head out of the shower. I leaned in and kissed her.

"What are your plans for today?" I was hoping we wouldn't have to have a discussion about the skip tracing again.

She smiled at me. "Well I am pretty sure I am going to get fired if I don't catch up on my background checks that are spilling out of my in box. I have to work extra hard. I don't think my boss likes me very much."

I shook my head. "You know I heard the same thing. I heard that he is so wrapped up with this woman he loves more than life, that is carrying his child that he has completely ignored everything else in the world and if people around him don't start picking up the slack he's going to notice and heads will roll."

She leaned out again and kissed me one more time before retreating under the water. "Get to work you slacker. Baby's going to need a new pair of shoes."

I laughed and left the apartment, got into the elevator and headed down to five. I usually go to the gym first, but I decided to hold off and do my work out before we headed for dinner. I would need to build myself up for that.

When I got out of the elevator, Tank was waiting for me by the monitor bay. He crossed to me, meeting me half way. He leaned in, so that our conversation would be private.

"Ric, Lula called and asked why Bomber hadn't been by. I told her she was just a little anemic and that she would call her later."

I patted him on the back. "Thanks. Babe will tell her and Connie when she is ready."

I went to my office and instantly got a headache at the amount of paperwork on my desk. I sat down and got to work. I was lost in one of the many financial statements that, much to my surprise, looked better than I expected, when there was a knock at my door. I looked up at the clock on the wall. It was noon, and I had been at this way too long without a break.

"Enter."

Bobby stuck his head in the door smiling. "Ranger, we have a small situation that needs your attention."

I stood and met him at the door. "You look too amused for this to be a crisis." Thank God for small favors I thought.

"No crisis, just an employee sleeping on the job."

I followed him through the maze of cubicles to Steph's. Lester was standing in the opening, blocking any view in. He was silently laughing and suddenly a sound reminiscent of a buzz saw came drifting from behind him. That started both Bobby and him to shake as they tried to control themselves. Lester moved out of the way and there was Babe, sound asleep with her head on her desk. Her mouth was open, there was a pool of drool on her desk and she was snoring like I had never heard before. This started me struggling to maintain my own composure.

Steph let out another snore so loud it woke her up. She sat up with a start and looked up at us. We all tried to put our blank faces on, but our shoulders were still shaking as we tried to suppress our laughter.

She let out a huff and stood. "Shut up. You try growing a human being inside your bodies with no coffee and see how well you do!" She stormed past us to the lunchroom. Bobby and Lester escaped in opposite directions and I followed behind her.

She had her head in the fridge, looking for the healthiest choice, I was sure of it. I came up behind her and looked in over her shoulder.

"Can you grab me the turkey sandwich?" She picked it up and threw it at me over her shoulder. "I guess I better not ask for an apple huh?"

She had grabbed a tuna salad sandwich and a V-8. She sat down at the small empty table in the corner. I pulled up a chair and sat opposite her. We didn't say anything; we just were having a battle of wills in silence. Well she was having a battle. I was still just trying not to laugh. Finally I decided that I better surrender if I ever wanted to have sex again.

"You know Babe, it is ok to go and take naps if you need them."

She looked down. "I know. Sorry, just closed my eyes for a second, and then I was out I guess." She looked up at me and smiled. "I am wide awake now." She grabbed her food and started to walk back to her desk. "Don't worry boss man, I'm back to work." She saluted me and headed back to her desk. I grabbed my sandwich and went to finish my paperwork.

At 2:00, I finished my last report and went to check on Babe before heading to the gym. She was standing at the printer when I walked by. I stood behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist, putting my hands on her stomach.

"How are Babe and baby?" I whispered in her ear.

Steph put her hand on mine and pushed herself tighter against me. "Good. Are you going somewhere?"

"Gym. I'll meet you up on seven at 5:30. I will be ready and heavily armed." I laughed and kissed her on the neck before heading down to get mentally prepared for the evening.

Stephanie's POV

True to his word Ranger was ready at 5:30. He had managed to slip in the shower after me, be dressed in black slacks and a maroon dress shirt, open at the collar and black dress shoes before I was through with my hair. He stood and assessed me as I slipped on floral sundress, wedge sandals and a cardigan. When I was finished, I turned to him and he held his hand out.

"Ready?" He said as I took it and he led me out the door.

"No."

We got to my parent's house at 5:55. My Grandma and Mother were waiting on the porch. Ranger got out of the car and came around to open my door. As he was helping me out of the car he leaned it and said, "I'm wearing three pairs of underwear so my ass doesn't get bruised, just so you know. And I am heavily armed. I will shoot first and ask questions later." He kissed me and took my hand as we walked across the street.

"Hi Mom, Grandma. How are you doing?" I gave them each a hug.

"Hey there handsome." Grandma Mazur was the horniest old lady I had ever met.

"Good Evening Edna, Helen." Ranger smiled and his arm tightened around my waist.

We followed them into the house and Mom stopped us as soon as we were inside. "Lula came by today and told us you've been sick. You know you could have called."

I looked up at Ranger and he leaned forward and whispered, "Tank told her you were anemic."

I looked back as my Mother continued. "You need to take better care of yourself. Valerie has never allowed herself to get anemic." This caused me to roll my eyes. "Anyway I made something special for dinner to help get you feeling better." She led us into the dining room and told us to sit.

Dad was already sitting at the table. He looked up and grunted a hello. Mom and Grandma entered with a plate of rolls, creamed spinach and a platter covered with foil.

Mom smiled and pulled the foil off the plate. "We haven't had this in years. Liver and onions."

The smell hit me like a sledge hammer. I knew I wouldn't make it upstairs to the bathroom, so I ran outside and got sick in the hydrangea bushes next to the house. Ranger was immediately behind me rubbing my back, but I heard him laughing quietly.

"Babe."

I stood up to see my Mother and Grandmother standing in the doorway with their mouths agape.

"Beverly Ferguson's daughter has never gotten sick in her hydrangeas. What are the neighbors going to say?"

I looked at Ranger. "I can't go back in there. The smell it too much."

He turned and looked at them. "Helen, would you mind getting Frank and meeting us out here."

My mom's eyes narrowed at Ranger and called for my father. Dad came around the corner looking annoyed that his dinner had been interrupted.

Ranger then looked at me. I was up.

"Mom, Dad, Grandma, I am not anemic. Carlos and I are going to have a baby."

There was a long silence and finally my Dad looked at Ranger.

"Do you love her?"

"Yes Sir."

"Will you take care of them?"

"Yes Sir."

"Will they end up here sharing my bathroom?"

"No Sir." Ranger smiled

"Congratulations." Dad went back to the dining room table.

Grandma smiled and placed her hand on Ranger's butt. "I'm just surprised it took you so long. If I had a chance to be with a man with this fine of a tooshie, I would have been pregnant a long time ago."

Ranger gently took her hand and removed it from him. "NO." He said firmly.

Grandma laughed. "I love a man who takes charge."

Ranger moved to the other side of me.

My Mom was silent. She was just staring at me with her mouth tight. My stomach started to lurch again and I turned once more to the bushes. When I stood back up she was gone. I looked up at Ranger and then back to my Grandma.

"She'll come around Sweetie." Grandma said while giving me a hug.

Just then Mom appeared with plate covered in plastic wrap. It contained a pineapple upside down cake with three pieces cut out. She handed Ranger the plate and put her hands on my arms. "I am not going to lie to you and say I'm not disappointed. Are you happy?" She had a tear in her eye.

"Very."

She took a deep breath. "Well please don't run off to Atlantic City or anything. I would like to be at your wedding." She turned to look and Ranger and if looks could kill he'd be laid out on the sidewalk. "There will be a wedding right?"

"Yes. As soon as the time is right." Ranger kissed me on the side of the head.

"Then I guess I better line up the hall for the shower." She walked back in the house followed by Grandma, leaving Ranger and I on the porch holding a cake.

We both sighed and looked at each other.

Ranger put his hand on my stomach. "Thanks kiddo because there was no way in hell Daddy would have eaten liver and onions."


	19. Chapter 19

I do not own these characters. With the exception of those already noted, they belong to Janet Evanovich. Sorry for the delay. Between, kids, the holiday, school and going through a divorce, there wasn't enough hours in the day. Plus I am also writing two other stories at the same time. If you haven't already, and you are a Twilight or a Supernatural fan, please check out my other stories. Thank you all again for your reviews. Hope you like the chapter.

Chapter 19

Stephanie's POV

Well dinner with my parents actually went better than expected. Besides the fact that I puked in the bushes, their reaction was much better than I could have hoped for. Ranger brought me straight home after and unfortunately I was sick all night. I couldn't help but think that part of the reason why was because I was scared shitless about the next day.

When the sun slid across the bed in the morning, I squeezed my eyes shut tighter and buried my face in Ranger's chest. I felt his silently chuckle under me.

"You can run Babe, but you can't hide. Well let me rephrase that, you better not run because I'll just drag you back." I smacked his chest and he laughed out loud this time. "Trust me Babe, today will be great. My family is going to love you and they are going to be so excited about the baby. Lester will be there if I get pulled away from some reason, so I promise I won't let you get cornered." He kissed the top of my head. "How is your stomach feeling? You want some breakfast?"

I nodded my head and looked up at him. "I'm just afraid that I'm not going to be who they had in mind for you. Let's face it, most of the time I'm more trouble than I'm worth."

He sat up in bed, taking me with him. I turned to look at him as he put his fingers under my chin. "You make me happy Babe, that is all they are going to care about. And for the record, you are worth all the trouble that seems to follow you and more." He kissed my nose and exited the bed to go out and call Ella for breakfast.

I got out of bed and got into the shower. We were expected at Ranger's parent's house at 2:30 for a family barbeque. Ranger had told me that we were going to go shopping for the baby before headed over there. I took deep breathes in the shower, trying to build my confidence, but it wasn't working. I exited the shower, put on Ranger's big terry cloth robe and did my hair and makeup. By the time I exited the bathroom, I could smell French toast and bacon.

Ranger sat at the table, reading the paper with a bowl of fruit and whole wheat toast in front of him. I lifted the silver dome on my plate and it had four pieces of French toast with butter melting down the slices, four slices of bacon, and a large cup of hot maple syrup. There was also a cup of melon cubes next to the plate. I looked up at Ranger and smiled like I just opened the best gift ever. He laughed at me and took a bite of his toast. It all tasted so good. Luckily my stomach was cooperating and I savored each bite, crossing my ankles and swinging my legs under the table like a two year old.

"That sounds really good Babe." I must have been enjoying it a little too loudly.

"Sorry."

"No need to apologize. I just have never been so jealous of a fork in my entire life." He stood then and crossed to me. He leaned down and kissed me. "Sweet." He said as he licked the syrup I transferred to his lips. "I'm going in to take a shower. Make sure you get dressed for the day because we aren't coming back here before we go to my parents' house."

I sighed and nodded my head. I quickly finished the food and debated licking the plate, but I thought about my makeup and decided against it. I walked into the bedroom and picked out lavender sundress. It was empress cut and had a very flowing skirt that came just above my knees. I picked out a white sweater and a pair of lavender strappy sandals that I had bought specifically for this dress. I got dressed and looked at myself in the mirror. I thought I should dress as innocently as possible to offset the image Ranger's parents would have of me as the slutty girl their son knocked up. I fluffed my hair once more and went to my jewelry case to find earring and a necklace. I heard the bathroom door open and Ranger appeared towel wrapped around his waist looking like a vision of perfection. He walked over to me and gave me as much of a smile as I think is possible for him.

"Babe."

I assumed that was a good thing. That one word can mean just about anything. He kissed me and went into his walk-in closet. When he emerged he was wearing black jeans, a white button up shirt that was opened three buttons, and a pair of black riding boots. I had never seen him wear white before. The contrast on his skin sent a jolt to my doodah.

I had put on sliver drop earrings with amethyst settings. I had a necklace that matched and I turned to Ranger. "Would you mind?"

I handed him the necklace and turned with my back towards him. I swept my hair to one side and he place the necklace around my neck. As he was clasping it, he kissed from the back ear all the way down my neck to my shoulder. He then whispered in my ear, "Let's go shopping for the baby." He grabbed my hand and led me out the door. We rode the elevator in silence, but he had me tucked under his arm, close to him. He held my hand as we walked to the Porsche. I slid in and within seconds we were speeding out onto the streets of Trenton.

We were heading towards the mall and I was getting excited because, well that is what shopping does to me. But before we got to the mall, Ranger pulled into the underground garage of a large high rise. This was one of many that had been built in a new business district Trenton was trying to create. We pulled up next to a blue Mercedes. A man who appeared to be in his fifties got out. He was dressed in a very expensive suit and he was in very good shape, but in a less bulked up way than the Merrymen. I looked towards Ranger and he took off his sunglasses and placed them on the dashboard.

"What are we doing here?" I was thoroughly confused.

"Shopping for the baby." He opened the car door and the man in the suit offered his hand. I followed and came to stand beside Ranger.

"Mr. Manoso. How are you this morning?"

Ranger nodded at the man, "Richard this is Stephanie Plum, Stephanie this is Richard Sims, my real estate agent."

I shook the man's hand and then what he said hit me. "He's your what?"

Ranger's POV

I love watching Babe's face when a realization hits it.

"Babe, I'm looking into relocating the business. We are going to need more room if we are going to expand." I gave her a half smile and her eyes got wider.

"Mr. Manoso, Ms. Plum, allow me to take you on a tour." He walked us over to the elevator and we descended to the lowest of the three sub-basements. This would be perfect for the shooting range. The next underground level would hold containment cells. And the final one I had plans on converting into a whole medical floor. I wanted to be able to treat my personnel with no questions asked.

We then made our way to the lobby. It was light, but windows were high off the ground. I liked the privacy it offered. Babe seemed to be in a daze.

"How many floors does this building have Mr. Sims?" Steph asked timidly.

"Well there are twelve including the subfloors. Plus the square footage is almost double of the current Rangeman building." We went to get back on the elevator, but I wanted to show Babe my plans for our new home alone.

"Richard, would you mind if I take Ms. Plum up to twelve alone. I need to discuss some things with her in private." He motioned for us to get on the elevator and when the doors closed, I couldn't help but laugh at the look Babe gave me.  
"What are you doing? Have you lost your mind?" She was truly shocked and I loved it.

"No. I've wanted to expand, and there was no room for the baby on seven with us in the new building. This way I can add more employee housing, give Ella a bigger place and expand the business operations." Just then the elevator bell went off and the doors opened to a small foyer. I opened the double doors and I heard Stephanie gasp. Right now the room was a completely empty canvas. There were no rooms sectioned off, it was just wall to wall windows. Off to the left, at the end of the large room was a patio. Babe just kept looking in circles around the room, and then her eyes focused on me. Suddenly she slapped me on the chest and yelled.

"Are you frickin kidding me?"

I laughed again. I couldn't help it. She just smiled at me, grabbed my hand and put it on her stomach. "You've got the best Daddy in the world kiddo. Don't you ever forget it."

I looked at her and kissed her. "Does this mean you like it?"

She nodded her head. I took her hand and we went back down to the lobby where Sims was waiting.

"Richard, come by my office on Monday, we will work on a deal." Richard Sims smiled, probably already spending his commission in his mind.

"Perfect Mr. Manoso. Ms. Plum, it was a pleasure to meet you." He shook both our hands and Steph and I got back into the elevator to go to the garage alone. I wanted to give Sims time for whatever celebration ritual he needed to perform.

I looked at my watch as we got back into the car. It was a forty-five minute drive to my parents' house and it was 1:30 so I thought we should be on our way.

Steph and I were both lost in our own thoughts on the drive. I grabbed her hand as we pulled onto my parent's street. "How you feeling Babe?"

She smiled at me weakly, "Fine."

I brought her hand up to my mouth. I kissed it. "Nothing to worry about Babe. They are going to love you."

Steph gasped at the amount of cars that were parked in the driveway and along the street. "These aren't all for the dinner are they?"

"Yeah. It doesn't look like everyone is here yet." I looked at her and winked.

Just then her door opened and Lester stuck his head inside. "Thank God you are here. I have been going through the Spanish Inquisition in there." He took Steph's hand and helped her out of the car as I exited and met them on the sidewalk. "Looking great Beautiful. Don't worry; I've got your back."

"Yeah but he's the black sheep of the family, so that's not saying much." Lester shot me a dirty look and then smiled. "Well let's go."

As we crossed to the front door, I heard a chorus of "He's here" come from inside. I looked over to Babe as we settled on the stair before opening the door.

She sighed and smiled up at me, "Well let's just hope I can keep down my breakfast. Your Mother's roses are much nicer than my Mom's hydrangeas."


	20. Chapter 20

I do not own these characters, they belong to Janet Evanovich except those that are already noted. I hope you like the new chapter. Thank you all for your reviews. Sorry they have been a little slower getting to you all, school has been kind of kicking me in the butt. Trust me, I would much rather be spending my time with Ranger and Steph than doing algebra.

Chapter 20

Stephanie POV

When the door opened I was pulled into a house as Ranger disappeared in a crowd of people. Lester stood behind me and Ranger never let go of my hand so I was instantly claustrophobic. Once everyone had said hello to Ranger, there was silence as they all turned to stare at me. Ranger returned to my side and cleared his throat.

"Mama, Poppi, you remember Stephanie Plum." I had met his parents after he had suffered a near fatal gunshot wound. We were in the hospital at the same time and exchanged small talk, but we were all too consumed with worry to really get to know each other.

"Of course, Stephanie nice to see you again." Ranger's father came and extended his hand. I took it and his eyes darted down to Ranger's hand entwined in mine. Ricardo Manoso was as tall as his son, but much thinner. He and Ranger looked very similar and I suddenly became aware that this is how Carlos would look when he was older.

"So nice to see you again Mr. Manoso."

"Please call me Ricardo. And you of course remember my wife Teresa." Ranger's mother came to stand beside her husband and she too looked down at Ranger and my hands together. She pulled me into a hug. Teresa was about five four and very thin. Her hair was perfectly set and I instantly notice that Ranger had inherited her eyes.

"Stephanie, it is so nice to see you again." As she released she shot a look up to Ranger that looked like she was very upset. My stomach did a flip. Luckily everything stayed down.

"Can we talk to you two in private for a moment?" Ranger brought his hand up and rubbed him mother's arm. Ricardo started down a hall to the right and we followed. We went in the third door on the left, it was an office. The room was warm, decorated in cherry stained wood furniture and filled with books. Ricardo and Teresa sat in two wingback black leather chairs and Ranger and I sat on a matching couch opposite.

To be honest, I wasn't as worried about telling Ranger's parents as I was mine. From the little he had talked about them and from our limited interaction, they seemed like very open and loving people. However, now that I was looking at them, I was terrified. Part of me knew that they would be outwardly pleasant no matter what they truly thought, but it was their opinion of me that I was so worried about.

"Stephanie and I have some news to share." They both looked between us and smiled. "First of all, Stephanie and I are living together. We have been for about four months now. We are very happy and Stephanie is the woman I want to build a life with." Their smiles widened and Teresa clapped her hands.

"Gracias a Dios. Hemos sabido que ella era para usted desde la primera vez que la vi." (Thank God. We have known she was meant for you since the first day we saw her.) Teresa's eyes got teary and I was hoping that their reaction to the remaining news would go as well. I looked at Ranger for a translation, but he just squeezed my hand and took a deep breath.

"There is more. Stephanie and I are going to start a family. We are having a baby." There was a long pause. The silence overpowered everything else. I looked between Ranger and his parents. No one said anything. Suddenly Teresa stomped her feet and covered her mouth as she screamed. I jumped and slid closer to Ranger. He looked down at me and smiled. The next thing I knew, Ricardo was pulling me to my feet and embracing me. Teresa suddenly stood and leaned over and took Ranger's face in her hands.

"Este es el mejor regalo que podía me han dado. Que me han hecho más feliz que nunca puedo decir hijo." Teresa kissed Ranger on the forehead and patted his cheeks. (This is the best gift you could have given me. You have made me happier than I can ever say son.)

Ricardo pulled back from our hug. "Welcome to the family Stephanie. We were starting to give up hope for this one to ever settle down." Ranger stood then and took his father's hand and then Ricardo pulled him into a hug. "Carlitos we are all blessed."

Teresa came to me then. "Stephanie, I am so happy to have you in our family. You two are going to have such a beautiful child." She hugged me and whispered in my ear, "Thank you for making my Carlitos so happy." She kissed my cheek and smiled at me.

We left the office then and went back into the main living area. The whole room got silent and then Ricardo smiled and said loudly, "Carlitos and Stephanie are starting a family." The whole room erupted in a cheer and I was passed from person to person. I don't think I remembered one introduction that was made. Everything was a blur. I then heard a familiar voice whisper in my ear.

"I hope you are taking notes Beautiful because there will be a test afterwards." I looked over to Lester as he helped me find my way back to Ranger's side.

Ranger's POV

Stephanie was glowing as my family moved her around the room. Lester brought her back to me and I ran my finger across her cheek as she smiled weakly up at me.

"I don't think I'll remember anyone's name." She let out a small laugh, but I could hear the relief in her voice. I could tell everything had gone better than she planned.

"I'll help you." I leaned down and kissed her.

"Time to eat. Everyone outside." Mama pointed towards the back yard and we all went to find seats. I sat at the end of a picnic table, Babe beside me, and Lester slid in on the other side of her. Stephanie smiled looking back and forth between us, and I could tell she appreciated the backup. The rest of the women in my family were bringing out dishes of food as my father was pulling steaks off of the barbecue.

"Carlitos, Stephanie, you come and get your plates first." My father called and we walked to the table where the food was laid out.

Steph gave me an incredulous look as I filled my plate with tamales, potato salad, steak and all the food I normally try to avoid.

"Nontemple day Babe. " I smiled and looked at her plate which was twice as full as mine. "Your excuse?"

"I'm eating for two remember. This is for our baby." She gave me a huge smile and headed back to our seats.

Dinner was filled with pleasant chit chat and way too much food. I skipped desert, but Babe couldn't resist my mother's Tres Leche cake. She had second, and then leaned against me and patted her stomach. "The baby is happy." I kissed her on the top of the head and wrapped my arm around her.

The door bell rang and Mama went to answer it. She came back in with a long box, one that roses are delivered in. She looked at my father and smiled.

"Ricardo, what is this? You sent me flowers?" She took the card off the top of the box.

"They aren't from me." My father looked at me confused.

Mama opened up the card and I watched as her expression turned from joy to horror in a fraction of a second. She started to shake and dropped the box which fell open and a dozen black tinted roses fell to the ground. My father, Lester and I ran to her. She started to cry and looked at me, handing me the note. When I read it, my knees felt like they would give out and I had to fight the urge to pick Babe up and just disappear.

_Dear Mama Manoso,_

_You better tell your precious Carlitos to hurry and marry the girl so that when I am through, he can his bitch and his brat in the family plot. Tell them I'll see them soon. Oh and congratulations Grandma._

_A. A._

I handed Lester the note and looked back to Steph who was standing now and when my eyes met hers, she realized who the package was from. I crossed to her and then escorted my mother, father, Lester and Babe back to my parent's office. I looked over my shoulder as we left, "Everyone keep eating. Everything is fine; I'll explain when we get back."

When we got to the office, I closed the door behind us and Lester handed my father the note to read.

"What is the meaning of this Carlitos?" He held my mother close to him as she continued to cry. He held the note out for me to take and Steph tried to grab it, but I was faster.

"I want to read it." She was fighting back tears.

"Babe I don't think that is a good idea."

"Ranger, you promised me no more secrets." I nodded and handed her the note pulling her to me as she read it. She took a ragged breath and then went to sit next to my Mother on the couch.

I explained everything to my parents going all the way back to the beginning. When I was through, my Mother had her arm around Stephanie, holding her close to her. She kissed her on the forehead.

"We love you. We love Carlitos. And we love our Grandchild. Everything is work out. You will all be safe and be a family." She stood then. "What should we tell all of them?" She pointed toward the back yard.

"Leave it up to me." My father stood and walked back outside with the rest of us following. When he got to the patio, he smiled. "This was just a practical joke gone wrong. One of Ranger's old army buddies was trying to pay him back for a joke committed years ago. Everything is straightened out. Sorry about that, now let's not let this good food go to waste."

I smiled at my family and looked down at Babe. She looked so tired. "Babe, I think we should get you home."

She looked up and me and smiled, "I am pretty tired."

We told everyone goodbye and left promises of coming back in a few weeks for a more intimate dinner. Lester left at the same time and walked us to the car. We got Steph in and Lester and I paused in front of the Porsche.

"How did he know you'd be here?" Lester was so angry that is face looked like it would crack.

"He must have either a tracker on us somewhere or he is following us himself. The card was from a florist in the strip mall down the street. Go check it out." I patted him on the back and he left on his errand. When I got in the car, Babe was sound asleep with her head against the headrest. I looked at her and the thought of losing her crept in. I felt my stomach knot and my adrenaline kick in.

I ran my finger across her face and whispered, "I will keep you both safe, I promise. You are all I want and need in this world. I love you." Then I sped home as quickly as I could where I knew she would be safe.


	21. Chapter 21

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Thank you all for your reviews. I appreciate them and enjoy reading what you think.

Chapter 21

Stephanie POV

When my opened my eyes and moved my hand to the empty place where Ranger should be I almost started to cry. It had been two months since our dinner at his parents and that had been the last contact we had had from Alverez. Ranger got called away two weeks ago for a mission. I didn't know where, but he called me when he could and Lester had been my constant companion so I haven't had an opportunity to get lonely yet. I just missed Carlos.

I had been waiting for the day to come when I looked pregnant. I had lost so much weight from throwing up I was starting to get worried. Wouldn't you know it? Two days after Ranger left, I woke up, looked in the mirror and I had a baby bump. I was amazed that seemingly overnight, I had the visual proof that all my hours spent praying to the porcelain god was worth it.

I was laying there rubbing my stomach, when I heard the door open and smelt pancakes and bacon drifted into the bedroom. I got out of bed and pulled on my robe, went into the kitchen and found Ella setting the table. She looked up at me and smile.

"Good morning dear. How are you feeling?" This was one of the many times I secretly wished that Ella would adopt me.

"Good. How are you Ella? Breakfast smells wonderful."

"There is enough for two, because Lester is coming to join you. That's ok right?" She looked at me sheepishly. None of them could stand the fact of me eating alone. There had been a few times that Tank had joined me for dinner when no one else was available. He seemed so uncomfortable, I felt sorry for him.

"That's fine. I'm going to get ready. Will you be able to stay and let him in?" I started back towards the bedroom.

"Of course."

I turned back to her, "Ella, I am going to need some maternity clothes soon." I pulled my robe open and showed her my expanding stomach.

She clapped her hand and quickly walked towards me. "Do you mind?" I shook my head as she placed her hand on my stomach. I had been wearing baggy clothes for the past two weeks, so this was the first glimpse anyone had gotten of my expanding midsection. "I have already bought you some things; I will bring something up and place it on the bed for you. I bring the other things up later today. Now go enjoy your shower. It will be waiting for you when you are done."

I hugged her and went into the bedroom shutting the door behind me. I crossed to the bed and inhaled the scent from Ranger's pillow. It still smelled like him, but it was fading. I had no idea when he would be home, but I was hoping it would be soon. I had a doctor's appointment today and although I think Lester is a great guy, he is not the person I wanted with me when I got my first ultrasound of the baby.

I crossed into the bathroom and stepped into the shower. I used extra shower gel, just so I could close my eyes and imagine Ranger was with me. We had only gotten closer over the past two months. Everyone else we told about the baby was excited. Lula and Connie were already shopping for clothes. Ranger had stated his reservations for the outfits Lula would pick out for our child. He did say no leopard skin spandex. I told him I thought we were safe.

We had agreed to wait until after the baby was born to even talk about getting married. On major life step at a time. My mother wasn't too pleased with me, but what else is new. Ranger's family was wonderful. They were the only ones other than the core group at Rangeman, who knew the whole truth about how my pregnancy came about. Even with that knowledge, they have been supportive and so loving. I met Teresa once a week for Lunch, usually with Ranger, but because he has been gone, lately it was Lester. We were scheduled to meet tomorrow and I was looking forward to it.

I sighed, inhaling the scent of my love one more time, and then I turned off the water and exited the shower. I had my doctor's appointment it two hours, so I did my hair and applied three coats of mascara.

I went into the bedroom and lying on the bed was a pair of maternity jeans and beautiful top. It had spaghetti straps and cascading purple ruffles that flowed down it. I got dressed and put on a pair of wedge sandals. It was April and it was going to be a beautiful day. The sun was shining and I decided I probably wouldn't need a sweater. I put on my earrings and grabbed a necklace. I was heading into the living room when I felt something in my stomach flutter. Just lightly, but it was there. I gasped and put my hand down, rubbing my bump. I started to cry and I opened the door to the living room. Lester and Bobby were setting on the couch and when they saw me, they jumped their feet.

"Beautiful, are you ok? What is it?" Lester crossed to me quickly and put his hands on my shoulders. I just looked down to my stomach as the baby moved again.

"Steph what is it?" Bobby wiped a tear from my face.

"Damn it. He missed it." Lester and Bobby smiled at each other and then the most beautiful voice in the world came from the doorway.

"What did I miss Babe?"

Ranger POV

I had told the General I would go on this mission, but I had a definite end date to be home. There was no way I was going to miss the baby's ultrasound. I hated leaving Babe, but it was something that only I could handle. I pulled into Rangeman about 9:00 am. I went to five first because I needed to talk to Tank. There was a client giving him problems. When I got off the elevator, Ella was standing by the monitor bay talking to Lester and Bobby. When they saw me, they all smiled and welcomed me home.

"I was getting ready to take these new clothes to Stephanie. She has outgrown her old ones." Ella smiled at me. Well that was new since I left. Steph hadn't even looked pregnant.

"I'll be up in a minute. You two go up and keep her company until I get there. Don't let her know I'm home though." Lester and Bobby laughed and followed Ella to the elevator.

I went to Tank's office and knocked. "Yo" I opened the door and found Tank setting at his desk going over paperwork. "Ric I am so glad to see you."

"Tank what's going on. Which account are you having trouble with?" Tank stood and motioned for me to set on the couch. He then turned on a radio and sat next to me on the couch.

"It's not an account, but I didn't want to tell you what was going on when you were so far away. We have discovered that Alverez has somehow been doing audio surveillance of the building. We intercepted a package that was left for Bomber at Pino's, but she and Lester had only decided to go to lunch there an hour beforehand while they were working on this floor. We have done a bug sweep and it is clean. I don't know how he is doing it."

I took a deep breath trying to calm my nerves. The sooner we moved into the new building the better. Every updated safety system was being installed. Unfortunately it took time.

"What was in the package?"

Tank looked down at the floor, "Before I show you this, remember that Bomber didn't see it. She doesn't even know anything about it. They brought it to the table while she was in the bathroom and Lester kept it from her." Tank reached into the side leg pocket of his pants and pulled out a small envelope.

I opened it and instantly thanked God for small favors. I was so grateful that Babe didn't have to read this.

_Don't worry Stephanie. If the baby has Ric's eyes, I'll be sure to mail them to him._

_Can't wait to see you again, _

_Tony_

I handed the letter back to Tank, "Put that in the file." I stood and went towards the door, "I'll be offline the rest of the day. Tank, thank you for keeping this from her."

He nodded his head and I crossed to the elevator. I closed my eyes on the ride up to seven, trying to push back the anger and disgust I felt. I didn't want anything to taint my homecoming. The elevator doors opened and I used the key fob to get into the apartment. As I entered I heard Babe crying and Bobby say, "Steph what is it?"

I stood in the doorway and watched as Babe had her hands on her stomach and was crying. "Damn it, he missed it."

I smiled because I was able to enter unnoticed. "What did I miss Babe?"

Her head snapped up and she ran to me throwing her arms around my neck. I lifted her up and instantly noticed that I couldn't pull her quite as close as before. My child in her stomach was starting to show. She kissed me all over my face and I laughed before giving her a deep, slow, passionate kiss.

"What did I miss?" I kissed her on the nose.

She smiled at me, and I didn't think it was possible for her to be more beautiful, but leave it up to Babe to prove me wrong.

"The baby moved. I felt it." I kissed her again and she placed her head on my shoulder and nuzzled into my neck. "I missed you."

Lester and Bobby moved towards the front door, "I guess this means I don't get breakfast." Lester laughed as they exited. Steph's stomach growled and I walked her to the dining room table. I sat her on a chair and put breakfast in front of her.

"When did you get back?" She was starting to slowly eat her breakfast, smothering her pancakes with butter and syrup.

"Just now. You didn't think I'd miss the kid's first picture did you?"

She just laughed and continued to eat.

"Babe do you mind if I take a quick shower while you eat? Not too long until we have to leave."

"Go ahead Carlos, I'll be right here."

I kissed her and made my way into the bedroom. I undressed and got into the shower. I tried to let the water wash away all my anger over not being able to put this Alverez situation to an end. If he was able to hear on five, he could hear all over the building. I got out of shower and called Tank.

"Yo."

"Tank how long until the new building is ready? Do we have an ETA?"

"We are just now finishing up the offices. The final touches, except for furniture have been done to the lower floors. Your apartment is just in the beginning stages."

"Put a rush on it. I don't care how much it takes. I want us all moved over by the end of the month. That is three weeks. No exception."

"Will do."

I hung up and went to get dressed. As I entered the bedroom, Steph was laying naked on the bed.

"We have time before we have to leave." She smiled up at me, her face covered with desire.

My towel dropped as I let my own arousal take over. She looked at me and licked her lips. I crossed to the bed and covered her body with mine. I looked down at her, neither of us saying anything. Finally she smiled at me and ran a finger down my spine.

"I love you." I kissed her and entered her slowly. She gasped bringing her legs around me to push me deeper inside her.

"I love you Carlos. I love you with all my heart." Her breath caught as I started to move faster. I felt her start to contract around me and I knew I couldn't hold on much longer. I had needed her more than I felt comfortable with and wanted her more than she would ever know.

We both came together; I was in a place that I never felt more at peace. Suddenly my peace was shattered by the sound of breaking glass as an object came flying through the window. I covered Babe with my body, preventing glass from landing on her. I rolled us off the bed and onto the floor, letting Steph land on top of me. I heard the front door fly open and I pulled a blanket over Steph and I as Lester and Tank rushed in the room.

"What the hell?" Lester yelled. "Are you both ok?" I had pushed Steph up against a wall without even knowing it and had placed myself in front of her.

Tank looked around the room and suddenly crossed to the closet doors. He knelt down and picked up a metal cylinder. It wasn't an explosive, but it had been launched through the window. He brought it to me and I stood and Lester handed me a robe. He went into the bathroom and brought Babe her robe. They both turned as she placed it on.

I opened the cylinder and a condom and a note fell out.

_Don't you two know that's what got you in trouble in the first place? I am just having so much fun. Let's just hope I don't get bored and decide to end the game before all the players have entered the field. That just wouldn't be fun at all. _

_A. A._

I threw the cylinder at the wall and heard Steph crying behind me. I wrapped her in my arms and turned so I could look at Tank.

"The timeline on the move in now. You do whatever needs to be done to get us there yesterday." He nodded and headed towards the door as Lester arranged for the window to be boarded.

I pulled Babe away and kissed her. "I'm so sorry. As soon as we are done at the doctor's we are going to go away until the new place is finished. I know where I'm going to take you and I think you'll love it. Now go in and get ready. I love you."

Lester looked back at me. "You going to let us know once you get there?"

I half smiled at him. "No, because you and Bobby are going with us. Pack a bag. Road trip."


	22. Chapter 22

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich except those previously noted. Sorry for the delay. Life keeps getting in the way dang it. I hope you like the next chapter and I am gearing up to write the conclusion. (Still some time to go on that though) Thank you for your reviews. I appreciate them so much. It helps me know that I am still keeping your interest.

Chapter 22

Stephanie's POV

"You were wrong earlier." I looked at Ranger as we excited the garage at Rangeman.

I saw his eyes shift to me from behind his sunglasses. "Babe?"

"This is not the baby's first picture. We had that on our first visit. Remember?" The corner of his mouth rose slightly.

"Well this will be the first picture when it actually resembles something other than a black dot." I hit his arm and rubbed my stomach.

I was still shaken from earlier, but I was trying not to show it. I knew how worried I was and I could only imagine that Ranger's was a gazillion times more than mine. He was in the zone now as we drove to my OB's office. I looked out the window and sighed as he placed his hand on top of mine. We didn't say anything, and I knew better than to ask where we were going after the appointment was done. When we left Rangeman, Ella was in a hurry, packing us up and Lester and Bobby were given instructions to meet us at the OB's office and we would leave from there. Tank was staying behind to keep an eye on things and get the new building and the office running.

We pulled into a parking spot and Ranger quickly exited the Porsche and then came to open my door. His body surrounded me as we walked into the building. I think he felt we were too out in the open and as usual, he put himself in the path of any danger. He relaxed as we got into to lobby. We entered the elevator and went to the fourth floor. I went to check in at the receptionist and after we were told to take a seat, Ranger stepped up to the desk.

"We are going to be traveling and I was hoping you could give me names of suitable Obstetricians in these cities so that Stephanie can keep up her prenatal care." He handed the receptionist a paper.

"Of course. I'll have that for you when you leave." She smiled at him and a pang of jealousy ran through me. She was cute. Mid twenties, blonde, thin. I must have been giving her quite the look because Ranger gently took my arm and led me to a chair.

"You have nothing to worry about Babe. I only have eyes for you." He kissed me gently and then grabbed an Entertainment Weekly that was about two months old and placed it in my lap. I had leafed through it about three times before they called my name. Ranger and I stood and he wrapped his hand around my waist as we walked back to the exam room. I was weighed, my blood pressure taken and then handed a cup for a urine sample. Ranger gave me a half smile and I gave him a discrete Italian gesture as I left the room to give the require sample.

When I returned to the room, Ranger was standing next to the exam table, arms folded across his chest. He handed me a gown and then looked me over as I changed. His hand started moving one of the stirrups around at the end of the table. "You know, these could come in handy." He raised his eyebrows and I gave him my best "Berg" glare.

"Great, now I'm going to have that image in my head." I walked to him and he lifted me up, placing me on the table. Just then there was a knock on the door. My doctor, Dr. Reynolds, came in the room. She was in her forties and looked like she was part of the tree hugging, granola crowd. She came in and shook our hands and told me to lay back on the table.

"Now first I am going to do a vaginal exam Stephanie, and then we will do the ultrasound. Now according to my calculations from your last visit, you should be about fourteen weeks along. We are going to be using one of the 4D ultrasounds. It has an amazing picture. We might be able to tell the sex of the baby, but we might have to wait until the next visit. Do you want to know?"

I looked to Ranger. We hadn't discussed it, but I wanted to know. He nodded once to me and I said, "Yes."

"Ok then let's get this unpleasantness over with and move on to the fun stuff." I put my feet in the stirrups and looked at the ceiling while Ranger held my hand. It was over quickly and I was relieved when she told me everything appeared fine.

"Doctor, we will be leaving town for awhile, I asked your receptionist to give us names of physicians for us to see. We will also need a copy of Stephanie's medical records to take with us. Will that be a problem?" Ranger was very pleasant, but I still wouldn't want to be Dr. Reynolds if there was a problem.

"That should be fine. Although, it seems that Stephanie, your blood pressure is quite elevated. I really would like you to check back with myself or one of the referring OB's in two weeks." I nodded my head and looked up to Ranger. He seemed fine, but I could see the tension in his jaw.

Dr. Reynolds wheeled over the ultrasound equipment and draped a blanket on the lower half of my body and lifted up my gown. She apologized before placing the goop on me. It was very cold and I jumped, caused the corners of Ranger's mouth to turn up. The machine whirled to life and there was static and then we saw it. On the monitor was our baby. It was moving and kicking. I couldn't feel it, but it looked to be doing one of Ranger's workouts. Its perfect little head turned and it looked right at us. Dr. Reynolds kept capturing images and doing measurements. "Well the baby looks great. You are at fifteen weeks Stephanie. All the development is normal, and congratulations, you are having a boy."

I started to cry and looked to Ranger. He was just staring at the screen and I swear I saw emotion starting to break through. He looked down at me nodded his head, smiled and kissed my forehead. He leaned down and whispered in my ear, "I love you."

Dr. Reynolds handed Ranger the pictures and then looked at my chart again. "Stephanie, I would really like it if you were very quiet for the next few weeks until you see me or one of the other doctors. Your blood pressure is very high and I am worried about it. Other than that though, everything else looks fine. I'll have a copy of the file waiting for you at the desk, go ahead and get dressed and we will see you when you are back in town." She waved and left Ranger and I alone in the room with the picture of our son still on the screen.

"Babe, go ahead and get dressed, I want to talk to the doctor really quick. I'll wait for you in the hall." He kissed me and quietly closed the door behind him. I got dressed in a daze, and then it hit me. I didn't know where in the hell I was going to be tomorrow. Crap, so much for keeping my blood pressure in check.

Ranger's POV

A son. That is the thought that kept coming in my brain as I looked for the doctor. She giving the receptionist instructions and then turned to smile at me. "Can I help you Mr. Manoso?"

"I will be having a medic traveling with us. What should her BP be, and when should we get her to the doctor if it is too high?" I wanted as much information as I could get so that Bobby would be able to care for them properly.

"Her BP was 165/115 today. That is way too high. I would like to see it at 130/90. If it stays were it is at today, or gets higher, take her to the hospital. You have to be careful that she doesn't develop preeclampsia. That can start about week 20. If we can get it under control now, hopefully it won't go to that. Just make sure she rests and stays calm as much as possible." She smiled at me and patted my arm.

I turned and saw Steph exiting the exam room. I walked to her and pulled her to me, kissing the top of her head. "Let's get this show on the road." She giggled as she said it and I could tell she was trying to get my mind off the new worry that had been added to the list.

The receptionist gave me the list of names and the file. I walked us to the elevator and as we approached, Lester and Bobby were leaning against the wall opposite.

"Report."

"We are all ready to go. Tank dropped us off and took the Porsche back to Rangeman. We are ready to leave when you are." Lester winked at Steph. "You ready for a couple of days on the road with a bunch of wild and crazy guys?" I gave him a stern look and we all got on the elevator.

We piled in the SUV, Bobby and Lester in the second seat and Babe and I in front. As we got on the freeway heading to Newark, Babe looked back at the guys, "Oh and by the way, you two are going to have a nephew." She turned back around and smiled at me.

"No shit? Hey do you think they make black cargos in baby sizes?" Lester laughed, and I could picture my son in a mini Rangeman uniform.

"Congratulations you two." Bobby gently rubbed Steph's shoulders and patted me on the arm.

I watched as Steph settled back into the seat, resting her head on the headrest. She was quickly asleep and I whispered as I filled in Bobby on the medical instructions.

"I packed all my essentials and I will take her vitals at least three times a day." Bobby was in medic mode and I knew that he would give her and the baby the best care he could.

We got to the airport and we stopped at the hanger. Lester and Bobby unloaded the SUV and took the bags onto the plane. I lifted Steph out of the car and carried her onboard. She nuzzled into my neck and whispered, "Where are we going?"

"I can't tell you that Babe. The big bad wolf may be listening." I had been doing some thinking and when I had contacted the General about Alverez, he had told me Tony was working with the latest in surveillance equipment. There were some new listening devices that could be programmed to pick up a target almost a half mile away. Of course it was all next gen stuff that the military was testing out, but I had a feeling that a lot of the equipment given to Tony on his last mission never made it back into government hands, so I really had no idea what we were up against.

I placed her in one of the chairs and fastened her seat belt. Bobby and Lester boarded and I knelt down beside Steph.

"Babe, Lester and I are going to be flying. You will be back here with Bobby. I want you to sleep. Relax. Everything will be fine and I promise you will love where we are going."

Bobby strapped in next to Steph and Lester and I made our way to the cockpit. "I called in a few favors. Harry, in the tower agreed to handle our flight plans himself and all we have to do is give out one of the numbers to tell him which one it is. I wrote them down here." I looked at the list of seven possible locations. I wanted somewhere secluded and far away. We taxied out and Harry came on the radio.

"You are all clear Ric. Take off when ready."

I had flown so many times that I was in almost an auto pilot mode as we took off. Once we were clear, I looked at the list again.

"Plan number 4 Harry."

"Have a safe flight." Harry said in acknowledgment and I looked to Lester.

"Four? Really? Crap I should have packed my rain gear." I knew that Lester would have much rather had plan 2 which would have taken us to Los Angeles. But I wanted secluded.

"Oregon Coast, here we come." Plan four took us to Newport, Oregon and a three story beach house that was a few feet away from the waves. I couldn't wait to see Babe's reaction when she saw it.


	23. Chapter 23

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I hope that you enjoy the chapter. Please continue to review. It helps me to know I'm on the right track.

Chapter 23

Ranger's POV

After we were well on our way west, I let Lester take the controls and I went back to check on Babe. She was sound sleep and Bobby was watching her intently. I sat in the seat next to my girl and Bobby looked at me, his eyes showing concern.

"Report", I whispered.

"I took her BP about twenty minutes ago. It has gone down some, but not much. The sooner we get her on solid ground the better. Where did you decide to take us?" Bobby knew how important keeping Stephanie and the baby safe was to all of us. I think that the added pressure was weighting on his shoulders.

"Newport, Oregon. I thought it would be relaxing."

Bobby smiled and nodded his head, "We haven't been there in years. She's going to love it." He sighed and sat back in his chair. Just then Steph stirred and looked up at me.

"Carlos." She smiled and for a split second, all was right with the world. "Are you going to tell me yet where we are going?"

I kissed her nose. "Babe." I shook my head and stood, walking back to the cockpit.

She sighed loudly, "I will get you back for this. You won't know when it is coming Manoso, but it will be fast and it will be brutal." She was trying to sound fierce, but laughed out the words instead.

I turned just as I entered the cockpit and gave her a quick "bring it on" motion before closing the door behind me. I sat in the chair and looked over the gages.

"How is she?" Lester was just as concerned about Steph as I was. He was more like my brother than my cousin, and I know he would never do anything to hurt me, but I also knew that he loved Steph. I had seen it in his eyes.

"She's okay. Her blood pressure is still up." I checked my watch. "We should be touching down at the Siletz Airport in about four hours. You want to get some sleep?"

"No I'm good. How about you?" He looked at me, almost throwing down a gauntlet. It was a game of chicken we often played ever since we were kids. The first to give into sleep loses.

"No, I'm not tired in the least." Not going down without a fight tonight Santos. And just to throw some salt in the wound, "You know you are on first watch when we get there right?" I smiled at him and he sighed.

"Fine. Wake me when we are ready for final approach." He stood and made his way back to the cabin.

As I flew, chasing the sun, I let my mind try to think like Alverez. For the life of me, I couldn't think of his next move. He had had opportunity. He was one of the best snipers I had ever seen, but he preferred these stupid games. He could have poisoned Steph, but instead he helped to bring about my son. When we figured out that Alverez was back on the scene, I had Miami Rangeman put Julie, my daughter, under constant protection. I really doubted that Tony would go after Julie though. He was there when she was born. He had emotional ties to her. As sick as he is, I still had hope that he had some humanity left. Before I knew it, my radio chirped.

"Alpha Tango 642, you may begin your descent to Siletz Municipal Airport."

"Roger tower, beginning descent now." The sun had set and now darkness surrounded us. I turned on the cabin intercom. "Lester, cockpit now. Final approach."

There was about a thirty second delay before the door opened and Lester took his seat in the co-pilot's chair. We had our own private hanger here, as we did at all the small airports where our safe houses were located. Of course they were under false names, but that was a necessity. The plane landed, smoothly if I do say so myself, and we taxied to the hanger. I let Lester park the plane in the hanger and do the final checklist on the plane while I headed back to the cabin. Steph was awake, but pale. She smiled at me as I entered and I unbuckled her seatbelt, pulling her into my arms.

"How are you feeling?"

She smiled at me, but some of the sparkle was missing from her beautiful blue eyes. "Tired. I've got one hell of a headache too, but I'll live."

I placed my hand on her stomach and she sighed. "And how is my son?"

She placed her hand on mine, "Hungry."

Bobby laughed, "Sure, that's the baby and not you. Let me guess, he wants TastyKakes, Boston Cream donuts and pizza right?"

Steph looked down at her stomach, "You see how well your Uncle Bobby knows you. He is going to be your favorite babysitter, I am sure."

Bobby and I both just shook our heads and gathered up what we needed to take with us. The plane had come to a stop and I opened the side door. Suddenly cold air came pouring in. I looked over to Babe and she shivered.

"Where did you bring me, Siberia?"

"Close Babe."

Stephanie's POV

Crap the air coming in the door was cold. Ranger took my hand and helped me down the stairs. There, of course, was a black SUV parked in the hanger. I looked down at the license plate and gasped.

"Oregon? I have never, ever had a desire to come to Oregon. Doesn't it rain all the time here?" There was a mist in the air and I could feel my hair instantly start to frizz.

"Not all the time Babe." Ranger took my hand and led me to the car, gently lifting me and setting me in the front seat. I watched as the big, strong men loaded the car. These pregnancy hormones were going to be a real bitch if I am going to be surrounded by these guys all the time. I was shaking my head trying to get the suggestive images out when the rest of my party joined me in the SUV.

"So where in Oregon are me exactly? The only cities I've heard of here is Portland and Salem."

Lester rubbed my shoulders, but moved his hands away quickly when Ranger let out what appeared to be a growl. Les laughed and met Ranger's eyes in the rearview mirror, but spoke to me. "You're going to love it here Beautiful. This is one of my favorite places to hide out."

I was getting frustrated because I still hadn't gotten a straight answer. Ranger pulled the SUV out of the hanger and I saw the attendant close the doors behind us. We left the small airport and pulled out onto a dark, barely two lane road. Lester cracked his window and a very familiar smell filled the car. But it was crisper than at home. I started to jump up and down in my seat and hit Ranger repeatedly on the arm.

"You brought me to the beach." I was so excited that it took me by complete surprise when Bobby yelled at me.

"Steph. You need to calm down some Bomber." Oh yeah, that's right. I needed to stay calm. We came to the end of the small service road and pulled out onto a state highway. We drove a short distance and saw nothing but knick knack shops and trees. I could smell the ocean, but where the hell was it. We rounded a corner and there it was in all of its glory. One of the hotels had lights shining down on the water. This looked so different than Point Pleasant. There were tall rocky cliffs and the waves crashed against submerged rocks nestled in coves. As we made our way farther south, I knew that because we were on the West coast and the ocean was on my right, see those Girl Scout years did have a purpose, it was so dark the head lights of the SUV seemed to barely penetrate the night. We were on the road for about thirty minutes when we pulled into the town of Newport. It looked like your typical blue collar tourist town. There were familiar chain restaurants and a Wal-Mart, but there were also salt water taffy signs and lots of places selling smoked fish. We got through the main part of town and took a right towards the ocean. We pulled up finally in front of a house with a vacation property sign in the window. It was at the end of the street, with nothing but a sharp drop-off to the left and front and a high fence to the right, separating it from the house next door.

Ranger got out, followed by Bobby. Lester messed up my hair, climbed out of his seat and then opened my door to help me out of the car. Ranger came around and took my hand to lead me into the house. I looked up as we entered, surveying the property. It was three stories and the exterior, at least on the road side of the house had only very small windows facing the road. It was covered with shake shingles that had been weathered grey. The property for rent sign caught my eye again.

"What is up with that?" I hit the sign as Ranger opened the gate to the walkway that led to the front door.

"All part of appearances Babe. No one has stayed in this house in about six years now. But we want it to appear that someone has. The housekeepers come every three days to dust and that way when we do need it, it doesn't appear strange when there are people here." I heard Lester swear from behind me as the gate closed in his face.

"Don't worry, it's not like I had my hands full or anything." I ran back and opened it for him before he had a full on temper tantrum. "Thanks Beautiful. At least I know that your kid will have a fifty percent chance of having some manners."

Ranger came back and took my hand to lead me up the stairs that put us on a large porch attached to the second floor of the house. There were no lights on the beach, but I could see the lights of what I assumed to be ships gently bobbing on the horizon. Ranger opened the door and pulled me inside before turning on the lights. When my eyes adjusted I gasped. This was the main living area. It had a large stone fireplace, with a sliding glass door that lead out to the porch. The furniture reminded me of what we had on seven back at Rangeman, and that wasn't a bad thing. The opposite end of the room opened up to a huge kitchen. I hoped the guys knew that I would only be getting use out of the fridge and occasionally the microwave in that room.

Again, Ranger led me to a staircase. "We can do the real tour in the morning, but right now I want to get you settled in our room and have Bobby take your vitals." I rolled my eyes and followed him up the stairs. This floor contained a large sitting room and double doors that opened up to a master suit that looked like it belonged in the West Indies. It had deep red and gold jewel tones, with a huge rod iron sleigh bed. There was a fire place in this room as well and what I assumed to be the master bath was off to the right as we entered.

I sat on the bed and let Bobby poke and prod me. He took my blood pressure twice and scowled. Never a good sign when one of the Merry Men scowled. "Do you still have a headache?" He asked and I nodded my head. "Is your vision blurry at all?" Again I nodded. "Steph, you have had a lot of excitement today, and I want you to climb into bed and sleep."

I looked over to Ranger who was studying Bobby's face. I could see the worry that was there and I didn't want to add to it by arguing. "Can I take a shower first?"

Ranger crossed to me and took my hands, "Of course. I'll get stuff settled out here while you get cleaned up." He gave me a bone melting kiss and smacked my butt as I retreated off into the bathroom. My head was really pounding and sleep did sound good. The bathroom was stocked with all of the things we had at home, so I felt at ease here. I let the hot water wash over me and as I was washing myself, I felt cool air enter the room. The shower door opened and Ranger stepped in. He didn't say a word to me as his hands ran over my body, spreading the lather everywhere. My breath caught as he ran his slick hands over my breasts. Pausing to give them the attention they longed for. I placed my hands on the wall to support me as my legs started to turn into Jell-O. As I leaned forward, felt Ranger press against me and knocking at my entrance. I gasped as his hand anchored onto my waist, keeping me from falling, and he slipped into me. He moved inside me as if he knew what I was feeling. He responded to me automatically. We didn't say anything we were just lost in the pleasure. Lost in each other. My body started to tighten, anticipating the release to come. Ranger's hands pulled me tighter against him as he moved faster, deeper inside me. As I started to climax he leaned forward and whispered in my ear. "I love you," and then I felt both of our bodies push over the edge. He held me close to his chest, and his quick breathes were tickling my neck. He cupped my breasts and laughed slightly. "I'm exhausted, but happy. How about you?"

I giggled softly and just nodded my head. Ranger kept me close but used one hand to open the shower door. He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around me, and then did the same for himself. He took my hand and helped me out of the shower and handed me a robe. I kissed him and got ready for bed. I pulled on a sleep tank and shorts. My ever expanding belly protruded under the shirt. I came out of the bath and the fire place was providing the only light for the room. Ranger was standing on the balcony wearing his robe. The sounds of the ocean filled the room. I walked up behind him and he turned, opening his robe and pulled it around me. "Let's go to bed. I want to play on the beach tomorrow."

He kissed the top of my head and we walked back into the house. We crawled into bed and I was instantly asleep, cradled up against his chest. The next thing I knew, Ranger's cell phone was ringing and he stirred under me to pick it up.

"Yo"

He sat up slightly and I tried to slide off his chest to give him some space, but his strong arm held me in place.

"Yeah, I understand. Try to keep everything from deteriorating any farther, I will be there soon."

Ranger closed his phone and swore under his breath. I looked up at him and for a second, his face was covered with sadness and worry. When he realized I was looking at him, he slid his mask back into place.

"I have to go back to Trenton. There is a problem with two of my top clients. They don't want to talk to Tank. I'll fly back and then get everything under control and be back as soon as I can." He kissed me and slid out from under me and straight into the bathroom. I had the feeling that the longer he stayed in bed with me, the harder it would be for him to leave.

I got up and put on my robe. I walked over to the doors to the balcony and gasped at the view. I opened the door and the cold morning air woke me instantly. The ocean spread out in front of me, smooth as glass. To my left was a long jetty. I could see fishing boats coming and going through the mouth, taking them to the docks. In the distance to the right, was a lighthouse. I hadn't noticed it last night. My mind was too full of Carlos. I pulled my robe tighter around me and the smell of coffee drifted into the room. I turned to see Bobby standing behind me, holding a coffee cup.

"Time to check on your vitals Bomber." He handed me the cup and sneered at him.

"Is this some kind of joke Bobby. Ranger told me no coffee." I looked at the cup and started to wonder if I could gulp it down without burning myself before Ranger came out of the bathroom.

"Decaf Bomber." I took a sip and sat on the bed. Bobby quickly took my blood pressure and my pulse. Ranger immerged from the bathroom, dressed in his typical black ensemble. He looked at the cup in my hand and scowled at Bobby. "Decaf boss." Ranger sighed and walked over to us.

"Report." I could tell he was not happy about having to leave.

"Better today. Still could come down some, but closer to normal range." I smiled up at him, but he still had his blank face on.

"Tell Lester he is driving me to the airport, I have to head back to Trenton to deal with some stuff." Bobby stood and left the room

Ranger knelt down in front of me, taking my face in his hands. "I'm sorry I have to leave. You're safe here. Have fun. Have Bobby and Lester take you to old town. Just don't go anywhere alone."

I nodded, trying really hard not to cry. He kissed me and stood. "I will be back in a few days at the latest. Call me if you need me."

I stood and wrapped my arms around him. He kissed the top of my head, slid down my body, kissing my stomach. He whispered something in Spanish to the baby and then stood and left.

I stood there for awhile, lost in the wake of his leaving. I took a deep breath and walked to the balcony again. I was standing looking out over the ocean, thinking about Ranger. Our past and all the possibilities for our future. I was brought back to the present when I heard a knock on the door.

"Come in" I turned and Lester and Bobby were standing there, big smiles on their faces.

"Get dressed Beautiful. How about we be tourists for the day?" That was when I got a good look at them. Both of them had on blue jeans and the ugliest tropical shirts I had ever seen. Bobby had on a fedora and Lester had on a large straw hat.

I laughed, "I'm not going anywhere with you two looking like that." They laughed and I crossed to them, pushing them out the door. "Give me thirty minutes and I'll be ready. In the meantime, put on something that doesn't look like you are former made men living in Bocca." They both laughed and I shut the door behind them.

I was just finishing my hair when I heard the bedroom door open. "Boy you guys are impatient." I laughed and came out of the bathroom and instantly turned cold. Standing there with a very calm smile covering his face was Alverez. The first thing I could think about was Bobby and Lester.

"Where are they?" I yelled.

"Santos and Brown are tied up right now. Don't worry, I don't have anything against them. We were like brothers once. They will both fully recover. But Steph, where are your manners. You haven't seen me in months and that is the kind of greeting I get?"

I started to search the room for possible escape routes, but none could be found. So I thought if I kept him talking, maybe Lester or Bobby could find a way to get to me. "How did you find us?"

Tony laughed, "I have just as many contacts as Ric, and lots of new toys." He held a device to his mouth. "Ric, we are having problems with the Martin account. They are threatening to bail unless you come and talk to them personally." The voice that came out was Tank's and if I had closed my eyes, I would have thought he was here in the room with me.

I started to shake and realized that I had nowhere to go. No one was coming. Tony crossed to me and smiled down at me. Suddenly his face turned hard and he slapped me across the face. I gasped and took a step back, tasting the blood in my mouth.

"We are going to be spending some time together. Until that little brat comes out, we will be out of the country for awhile. I am going to enjoy all of our time together. If you cooperate, I just might let you and junior go. If you don't, I'll kill you without a second thought." There was no doubt in my mind that he would kill me no matter what, but at least I could buy us some time. His hand made contact with my face again, and as I stumbled back, I felt something stick into my arm and a tunnel started to take my vision. The last thing I remember was the satisfied look on Alverez's face as the whole world went black.


	24. Chapter 24

I do not own these characters, except those that are already noted. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Life keeps getting in the way of my writing dang it, but this story has kind of taken on a life of its own. It is not going to be nice for awhile, but remember that Stephanie is strong and that her and Ranger's love for each other will prevail. There will be a separation, but reunions are sweet. I hope you enjoy the chapter

Chapter 24

Ranger's POV

Lester dropped me off at our hanger and I was getting the plane ready. The elderly plane owner next to me had been trying to engage me in conversation for about an hour now, and I was afraid I would have to be rude in order to be on my way. I wanted it to be a quick turn around in Trenton and hopefully I could be back here tomorrow. I needed to make sure everything was ready on that end, so I decided to confirm meeting times before I took off.

"Yo"

"Tank I want to get the meeting done as soon as I get back or first thing in the morning at the latest. Were you able to calm Martin down?" There was a pause and I suddenly got an uneasy feeling in my stomach.

"Ric what are you talking about?" Tank voice reflected the feeling in my stomach.

"Get Lester or Bobby on the phone for a status report." I waited as I heard Tank talking to someone on the monitoring station.

"No contact. No contact at the safe house either." There was sudden commotion on both sides of the phone. "We are on our way Ric."

The phone disconnected and I was running towards the tower. I didn't have a vehicle, but I knew the person who was working and worst case scenario, I'd just take his car and compensate him later.

"Frank I need to use your car. It's an emergency." Frank threw the keys at me and I jumped into his Ford Explorer and headed towards Newport. My phone rang and I read Steph's number on the readout.

"Babe?" I let the panic seep through my voice.

"Well she is here, but she's unable to come to the phone." Alverez mocked me on the other end of the line.

"Let me talk to her." I tried to maintain my calm, but I had never been in a situation where that was more difficult.

"She's sleeping. But I'll tell you what. Keep checking your email and you'll get an update on her and the brat soon enough. Oh and you might want to hurry and get to Santos and Brown. They are alive and they will live as long as they don't bleed out first." The phone disconnected.

I notified EMS and hit the accelerator. When I pulled up to the house Lester was being wheeled out. I ran up and he looked up at me, anger painting his face.

"Ric, how did he get here so fast?" It looked as if he had been shot in the side and he had a pressure bandage on his head. I just shook my head trying to figure out that exact question. Bobby was wheeled out next and he was still unconscious. Suddenly he rose up and started fighting the EMTs.

"Bobby." I yelled and he looked at me. "Report."

He stopped struggling and slumped back onto the gurney. "He drugged me. Tranq dart, long range. Besides this damn flesh wound, I'm fine." He pointed to an identical wound to Lester's.

Lester sat up on his gurney and turned to me, even thought the EMT's protested. "Has he contacted you?" The pain in Lester's eyes had nothing to do with his wounds.

"Yes. He told me he would contact me through email with some kind of link. It is confirmed that it is Alverez, but I don't have positive confirmation that he has Steph." I was trying to treat this like I would any abduction case, but it was anything but.

Reluctantly, Lester and Bobby were loaded into the ambulance and I went to talk to the police. I went with them on a search through the house and when we got to our bedroom, I had to fight no to put my fist through a wall. There were spots of blood on the floor and an empty syringe. I told the police who had Steph and that I had been contacted. I let them know that my company would also be doing our own investigation and because of past time spent at the safe house, they walked out of the room, leaving me alone. I looked around the room again. The bed still unmade, Steph's robe hung on the back of the door in the bathroom. All of her makeup lay out on the counter. He surprised her while she was getting ready.

I needed to know where the crack in my armor was. Somehow Alverez knew where we would be, and was able to move at lightning speed. Or maybe he was herding us into this situation. We had all worked together, and he knew that I would follow certain steps that I knew would work or at least I thought would.

I opened my phone. I had to get my head back in the game. If I let the reality hit me that the woman I loved, who was carrying my child, was with this lunatic, I would go crazy.

I dialed Tank's number and hoped he was on his way. I needed to know that my second would be here to be a set of eyes when mine became clouded.

"Yo."

"Report."

Tank took a deep breath, "Ric, I just got a call from Santos. He filled me in. I will be there in five hours. I'm in the air now."

"Tank I need to know how he found us. And all this technology he is using. There is something we are missing."

"Do you think the General is holding out on us?" I contacted the General when Alverez first came back on the scene. Since our military contract was fulfilled, our contact with him had been limited.

"I'll contact him. Come to the safe house as soon as you get in. I'll have a car waiting."

I called a local dealer that we used and had two new SUV's delivered to the hanger. I wanted to make sure that I had enough transportation. I never wanted to be in the situation I was earlier. Once I had that lined up, I dialed the General.

"General Ford's office."

"This is Ricardo Manoso calling. I need to speak to General Ford, it is an emergency." I was trying to remain calm, but as each second passed, my composure was starting to slip.

"One moment Mr. Manoso." There was hold music and then a click.

"Ric?"

"General, I have a situation that I need your help with." I filled the General in on everything that had taken place. When I was through, there was a long pause.

"Ric, I am so sorry. I can tell you what I know. Tony went off line over nine months ago. In his possession was next gen audio surveillance and he helped develop technology to flawlessly take on someone else's identity. The team he worked with since yours, well they are scattered all over the country, one of which works at the airport where your plane is stored in New Jersey. I would be willing to bet that is where he got your destination from. My next guess is that he would take your girl out of the country, via water. Probably somewhere in Mexico or South America. He can blend in there and will have contacts that aren't on our radar. Now as far as what he will do once he gets where he's going, I have no idea. From what you've told me, his mental state seems to have deteriorated to a state that I would put nothing past him."

"General can I get a list of names of his known associates from your end. Maybe we can start getting closer to an answer. I need to find her sir. She's having complications in her pregnancy and I am afraid that even if he does change his mind, we might be too late." I would turn over every rock on this fucking planet to get my Babe back her in one piece.

"I will fax it over right away and I will keep wheels turning here. Don't lose faith Ric." He hung up and I didn't feel any better after the conversation was done.

I heard the door open behind me and turned to find Lester and Bobby entering. They both had been stitched up and were back with a vengeance.

I opened my laptop. It had been four hours since the call from Alverez, and I was hoping that there was some news. In this at least I wasn't disappointed.

In my inbox there was a message. I opened it up and it had a link attached. When I clicked on it, there were pictures of Stephanie and me. Some together and some apart, all the way back to before she left for New Orleans. They were listed in chronological order and the last five on the page force me to muster as much self control as I ever had before. The first was Steph lying on the bedroom floor, blood on the corner of her mouth and she was clearly unconscious. The next two were of her in a trunk. The make of the car was not recognizable. The fourth was of Stephanie strapped to a table in just her bra and underwear and the last was a close up of her face, a bruise clearly visible on her cheek and she still appeared to be unconscious.

Lester started to shake and threw a lamp across the room. Bobby slumped down against the wall. I just wanted to get way from what I had seen. I stood and looked out the window. Steph had wanted to play on the beach today. That was where we should have been. Letting the wind blow her already unruly curls around her face. I closed my eyes and tried to center myself. I could not help Babe or my son when I was this scattered. I turned back to Bobby and Lester.

"We think he may be on water. I want you, Bobby, go and secure a boat and get it ready to go. Tank will be here soon and he has the experience necessary. Lester have all of our documentation transferred over so we can cross borders if necessary and put calls in to make sure that airports and both Northern and Southern borders have Stephanie and Alverez's picture." I called Rangeman to have the list the General faxed over sent to me here. We had work to do and time was fleeting.

Stephanie's POV

When I woke up, my head was killing me. It was dark and I suddenly realized that I was cold and my arms and legs were not moving. I looked around to get my bearings and I found that I was handcuffed, both arms and legs to a metal table. The rocking of the room told me I was in a boat and the queasiness of my stomach, told me I didn't like it.

Suddenly there was a light coming into the room as a door was opened. Alverez stood over me with a video camera.

"Good Morning Sunshine." The sound of his voice made my stomach flip and I had to fight not to vomit. "I'm sending Ric a little video message. Anything you want to tell him?"

I decided that I wouldn't give him the satisfaction. Brave Stephanie had entered the building. I just looked at him and glared. He chuckled softly and planted another blow across my cheek. Damn, how did he manage to hit exactly the same spot every time?

"Say something Sweetheart, or the next blow will be to your stomach."

Panic took over and I decided I had better go with what he wanted. "Okay. Fine." I turned my head to spit out some of the blood that had gathered in my mouth. "Carlos I love you. I'm sorry. I hope that Bobby and Lester are okay." I was trying to stay calm. I didn't want to put Ranger through more than he was already going through.

"Sweetheart, I was hoping for something a little more dramatic." Alverez leaned over me, stroking my hair. Suddenly he grabbed a handful and pulled it as hard as he could. I screamed involuntarily and struggled against the cuffs on my hands. "That's a little better. Maybe by the time we film the next one you will have a little more practice."

He then turned the camera on himself. "Ric, I haven't decided yet exactly what it is I'm going to do. I might just claim your prize as my own. Or I could wait until the kid is born, kill this one" he pointed the camera quickly to me and then back to him, "and raise him as my own. Or I could just get bored and get it over with sooner than expected. "He shrugged and the nonchalance of him talking about the death of my child and I was more than I could take. My stomached lurched and I started to throw up. I turned my head automatically towards him. He backed up quickly and I heard him yell, "Stupid bitch." Suddenly his hands were in my hair again and he slammed my head onto the table. Black spots covered my vision and I was surrounded by darkness.


	25. Chapter 25

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Please hang with me. I know it is dark right now, but please hang with me. There will be a HEA I promise.

Chapter 25

Ranger's POV

We all sat around the computer, watching the video that Alverez had posted of Stephanie. As I watched her try to be brave, I was proud of her. Any other person would have been crying and begging, but Babe was defiant. A completely blinding rage came over me as the video ended. The panic finally took over and seeing Alverez touch her, in anyway, but especially in violence, made something in me snap.

Five days have gone by since the video was posted and nothing. I haven't slept, I haven't eaten. All that is feeding me is envisioning killing that sick son of a bitch. There was a knock on my office door.

"Enter."

Tank stuck his head in. "Ric, a new video has been posted."

I stood and followed him into the conference room. Lester and Bobby were already in the room. I sat down and Bobby had wired the computer into the video screen on the wall.

I took a deep breath and looked at Bobby. "Go."

Suddenly, Babe's face was on the screen. She smiled weakly, but I could see new bruises on her face. She seemed to have on clean clothes and her hair was fixed. "Carlos, I want you to know that I'm doing okay. Tony has been getting me medical care. The baby is fine. I love you. Could you please do me a favor and have Lester watch Rex for me. I'd hate for you to ship him someplace I would hate." She smiled and the picture went black. Then Alverez came on the screen.

"Ric. See I'm not such a bad guy. I am really enjoying spending time with Stephanie. I am a little worried though. The doctor I am taking her to says she has a disease called preeclampsia. Just so you know she is a trooper. When she was told that there was a good chance that I might not even have to lift a finger, and they will both still wind up dead, she only cried for a couple of hours." I kept my eyes glued to the screen. "So Ric, I might just have a change of heart and send her back to you before the baby is born. That way you can at least have what I had. You can hold the hand of the woman you love as she dies in front of your eyes." The screen when black again and the video ended.

I turned to Lester, "What was all that about Rex?" He shook his head.

"I'm trying to figure that out myself. She must have told me something and is hoping I'll remember."

I stood and hit the table. "Damn it Santos pull your head out of your ass and think." In my mind, I knew that I had come to the end of my rope, but my body was acting on its own.

Suddenly Tank and Lester stood and took a hold of my arms. I struggled, but my physical strength was coming to an end. "Hold still Ric. This is for your own good." Tank had a tone in his voice that could only be described as sympathy. I felt a sting in my arm and I turned to see Bobby removing a syringe which he had just injected into me.

"You need to rest Ric. We will keep working, but we need you back with us, not like this." Bobby slid one of the desk chairs under me and I slid into it. Blackness was creeping into my vision. I was fighting it though. But I didn't have much of an arsenal left.

"I'll figure out what Steph was saying Ric. Just get some sleep." Lester sounded like he was talking in a long tunnel. Then all went black.

When I woke up, it was dark outside. The light on Babe's nightstand was on, and my eyes slowly focused. Setting in the room was Ella, my Mom and Stephanie's Mom, Helen. I took in the room quietly. My head ached slightly, but I felt better, at least I was rested.

"Carlitos." My mom crossed the room to me when she saw my eyes were open. "How are you feeling?"

I smiled weakly up at her. I hadn't told any of the family what was going on. I guess they knew now. "Better. How long have I been asleep?"

She ran her hand across my face. "About thirty six hours. Don't worry. The men have everything under control. You take a shower and meet us in the living room." She patted my hand and walked out of the room.

Ella took her place and kissed my forehead and followed my mother. Finally I was alone in the room with Helen Plum. I had never been alone in a room with her and this was not the circumstances in which to start.

"Ranger, or may I call you Carlos?" She stood and walked over to the side of my bed and sat next to me. I shifted so I was setting up and she looked deep into my eyes.

"Carlos is fine." I was worried she would want me to justify my actions and I had no justification except that I loved Babe and our child and I was just trying to keep them safe.

"Carlos, you know that I am not happy with the profession that my daughter has chosen. Part of that is because I have been jealous of the adventure in her life. I worry about her, but I also know that she will be able to say that she has lived. I understand why you kept this from us, but I want you to know that we are here for you. I am here for you. I can't do much, but I will do anything I can to get my daughter and grandchild back." She looked down and quickly wiped a tear away from her eyes. "I know how much she loves you, and I can see how much you love her. We are family. We will get through this together." She took my hand and squeezed it. "I am sorry for the way that I've treated you, and I promise," she smiled at me weakly, "well I'll do my best to keep my mother away from you."

I was in shock, but felt relief at the same time. I felt, for the first time, that not only did I have my men, but a whole family behind me. I had always tried to keep them out of what I did, as did Steph, but now they were pushing their way into what was going on whether we liked it or not.

"I'm sorry Helen. I will get them back. I will bring them home."

She placed her hand on my cheek, "I know you will. Now get yourself ready and meet us in the living room. There has been some progress."

I took a quick shower and dressed. When I entered the living room, the sight there almost made me think I was dreaming. Setting on the couch were my Father and Frank Plum. They were having a conversation and when I entered the room they both stood. My Dad pulled me into a hug and Frank shook my hand. My mother, Helen and Ella were in the kitchen. Setting around the dining room table was Tank, Lester, Bobby and Morelli. I walked over to the dining room table and Morelli put his hand out.

"Ranger, I'm here for whatever you need. We'll get her back. That is all that's important."

I nodded at him and looked to Tank. "Report."

"There has been no other contact from Alverez. The General called and stated that there was no progress on his end." I sighed. "But Santos had a revelation earlier today."

I looked to Lester and he was smiling. "I figured out what Steph was trying to tell me. When she and I first started working together after she came back from New Orleans, we were eating lunch at Pino's. She told me that if she kept eating that way, you were going to ship her off to a third world country. I asked her if there was somewhere she really wouldn't want so I could make sure it was top on your list. She just laughed and said, Mexico City. I think she's in Mexico City."

That made sense. Alverez had a lot of contacts in Mexico. He could blend in there, as the General said and Steph would feel isolated. If she did escape, she wouldn't know the language and would be easy to find.

"OK, wheels up in two hours. Tank, you make sure our weapons are ready. Lester you are in charge of our documentation and get a safe house set up through the General. Bobby, get what medical supplies you think we need. If possible, I want to bring her immediately back her, to her own doctor. Morelli, can you be in charge of making sure that security at the airport and hospital is in place for when we arrive." Everyone nodded and went off to perform their tasks. I then turned to the family.

"The new apartment is almost ready. Do you think that you could supervise the final stages and move our things over? I want to bring Steph home to there. A fresh start. Ella, you have all the numbers and Cal has been helping Tank with the building prep. Do what you need to do. I don't know if we should wait on the baby's room." I trailed off and my mother came to stand in front of me.

"Carlitos, you haven't told us if you and Stephanie have found out if the baby is a boy or a girl yet?" She was trying to be positive and I needed that at that moment.

I smiled weakly at each of them. "We are having a boy." Everyone embraced me in a hug and I was uncomfortable to say the least. I was getting my game face on and this was the last thing I needed. I broke from their grips, "We will keep you posted and we will be back as soon as possible." I turned then and left the apartment, heading straight for the elevator. When the doors open on five, Tank, Lester and Bobby were standing by the monitor station. I crossed to them, stopped and folded my arms across my chest.

"First of all, I understand why you did what you did. I was not functioning properly. But if you ever do it again, you will be asleep a hell of a lot longer than I was." They all looked down to the floor. I sighed, "Now let's go get my girl."

Stephanie POV

When we left the boat, it was dark. I had no idea where we were, but I figured it was Mexico somewhere. Alverez put me in the back of a SUV and kept me drugged most of the time. My head was killing me and I kept begging him not to give me anything else because I was afraid of what effects it would have on the baby. He really didn't seem to care. I took a few more blows to the face and after what appeared to be two days on the road, we arrived at a house out in the middle of a field. There were no trees and it was very hot, even for April. We had gone down a dirt road that must have been about three miles long. And even through my drug induced stupor, I knew that this would have nothing on the beach house I had last resided in.

I was placed in the basement, a windowless concrete block with a toilet and a sink on one end and a cot on the other. In the middle was a metal bar which secured the chain and shackle that Tony attached to my leg.  
"Tomorrow I'm taking you to the doctor. From now, until further notice you are Mrs. Estephan when we are out of this house. Play along and you just might survive this." He smiled and I knew that he wanted to drag this sick game out for the maximum amount of pain he can inflict. He left me then, only returning to give me a bowl of soup and a piece of bread a few hours later. He didn't return again until the morning when he threw clothes at me and barked for me to look presentable. The mirror above the sink barely showed my reflection and I saw that while I was sleeping, he had put makeup on the sink and a hairbrush. I did the best I could and when he came back down I was setting on the cot waiting for him.

"Not too shabby Mrs. Estephan. Now remember what I said. Keep your mouth shut and just smile."

I got to set in the front seat this time and I saw the signs were all in Spanish. Then I saw a sign that said Mexico City. I immediately started to think of ways that I could communicate to Ranger about where I was. I knew that I would be making another video soon. I remembered a very silly conversation I had had with Lester months ago about never wanting to go to Mexico City. Hopefully I can figure out a way to remind him of that without tipping Tony off. I knew that Lester would be with Ranger when he watched the video.

We arrived at the hospital in Mexico City and I was escorted to an office on the fourth floor. Tony greeted the receptionist and she smiled at me warmly. I returned it the best I could and we sat down in the waiting room.

"You're doing great Sweetheart. Just keep it up and you and the munchkin will live to see another day." He whispered in my ear and then kissed me on the cheek before pulling back to smile at me. I gave him a forced smile in return and suddenly our "name" was being called and we were escorted back to an exam room.

Tony talked to the doctor and both of them would turn and looked at me sympathetically. The doctor did all the same tests that I had done in Trenton, and when the results came in, Tony looked at me. While the doctor was looking at me, he looked like the concerned husband. When the doctor left the room so I could change, his look changed to one of a satisfied grin.

"Well Steph, it seems like I have another option that just presented itself. Apparently your pregnancy isn't going so well. You'll be luck to survive it, let alone the baby. Especially in our living conditions. Oh decisions, decisions."

I couldn't help it, I started to cry and he put on his concerned mask again as we left the office and returned to the car. I cried silently all the way home and Tony became annoyed. When we reached the house, he drug me from the car and was screaming at me to shut up. My head spun and I saw black spots in my vision. I tried to take a deep breath, but I couldn't get one. He pulled me down the stairs and sat me on the cot.

"Shut up I said." He connected with my cheek again, but I was numb. I just sat there as he shackled me again and left the room. I felt defeated, the only chance I had now was to try to get Lester a message he could pass to Ranger.

The next day, I only saw Tony when he brought food. I had exhausted myself, searching for objects I could use as a weapon, but found none.

The following morning, Tony came down and told me to get ready for a video message. He wanted me to look well taken care of, and he told me what to say. He wanted me to convey to Ranger that I was doing fine. I think he was changing his approach. I dressed and made myself look as nice as possible. Tony sat me in front of the camera. I said what he had instructed, trying to stay calm, and not upset him. I added the clue for Lester as discreetly as I could, hoping that he wouldn't catch on. He then turned the camera off and left the room. Tony had become a man of few words. Not having to hear him was nice, but I felt like I had a ticking time bomb under the same roof as me.

The next few days pass in loneliness. I spent my time thinking about my life. How differently my life would have been if I had just settled for Joe. But that was the whole thing. I wanted to fly, I never wanted to settle. I would not have given up any of the time that I had spent with Ranger. I would not go back and change my life again even if I could. I talked to the baby, telling him about all of the people in his life. When I told him about his Daddy, I had my hand on my stomach and I actually felt the kick against my hand. He also got very excited when I told him about his three over protective "Uncles" and his flamboyant Auntie Lula.

I didn't have any contact with Tony during this time except for the two meals a day he brought me and each time he did; he never said anything, just laughed as he set down one tray of food and removed the empty tray. That was how I marked time. Six meals since the video was made. I was starting to give up hope that Lester would have been able to pick up on my clue.

I was just starting to fall asleep when the door flew open and Tony had a hold of my arms, forcefully dragging me from my cot. "What did you do?" He screamed at me and threw me to the floor. "I don't know how you did it exactly, but congratulations. Your death has just been put on the fast track."


	26. Chapter 26

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. I am sorry that the story took such a dark turn. As Alverez developed in my mind, this was the way he went. For those of you I might have lost with the violence towards Steph, I apologize. Alverez just didn't seem to me like one who would see Stephanie as a human being. She is just the way to get the revenge he wants. Trust me, and I know this may sound difficult, but it was hard for me to write those scenes. But I really didn't feel I would be true to my story if I had him just be verbally abusive. This man is not firing on all cylinders. So the story is rapidly coming to a close and this is the last dark chapter. I appreciate all of your reviews and hope you like the final few chapters.

Chapter 26

Ranger POV

We landed in Mexico City and found that the General had come through for us once again. Waiting for us were six Navy Seals. They told us that some of Alverez's associates had given up intel when they became aware of what he was really doing in Mexico. We had the location of the house Stephanie was being kept at and we were ready to move. We would have to wait for darkness, but that was only a few hours away. We got our gear together and Bobby readied the medical transport.

As darkness fell, I gathered my team. "Our first priority is getting Babe to safety. After that, do what you want to Alverez, but the final blow is mine. I want my face to be the last thing he ever sees."

They all nodded and we got in the transport to head to Steph's location. We parked about three miles from the house. There was no moon, but it was a cloudless night. We had on our night vision goggles and my heart started to pound faster as the house became visible in the distance. I could feel Babe. I knew she was there. I sent Tank and Bobby around the back of the house. We had no idea what the set up was. I assumed that there was a basement. This seemed to be an old ranch style home, but with the way they built things here, who knew for sure. Suddenly there was talking on the radio.

"Ranger, there is a storm door, down to a cellar. I can see Alverez in the kitchen. There is no other movement in the house." Tank's voice whispered in my ear.

"Let's proceed slowly. I don't want anything we do to endanger Steph. Wait for my signal before you engage."

"Roger."

We proceeded slowly and the closer we got to the house the more uneasy I became. I assumed that Tony had some kind of monitoring on the house. I knew I would if I was him, but nothing was visible. We got closer, and the silence sent a chill down my spine.

"Ranger, there seems to be a commotion coming from the cellar. I can her Alverez yelling." Tank sounded on edge, ready to spring.

"Wait for my signal. We have to make sure this goes smoothly…." The sound of gunfire broke through the silence.

"Engage. Engage now damn it!"

Stephanie POV

I lay on the floor looking up at him. It took me a second to realize what he was saying, and then I felt that all too familiar, always wonderful tingle on the back of my neck. Ranger was here. At that moment something in me snapped. This piece of shit has put us through enough. If I was going to die, I was going to die fighting.

As Tony reached for his gun which was tucked in his waist band, I decided now was the time to act. I quickly swung my legs around and caught him on his shins, knocking him off balance and down to the floor. I must have knocked the wind out of him because I was able to get to my feet and kick him as hard as I could directly in the balls. "BITCH" he yelled with the last of his air that was in his lungs. I reached again for his gun, but adrenaline had taken over in my body. All the pain and stress came out in an explosion of rage.

I kicked him again and as I reached for the gun I was really only vaguely aware that I was yelling. "You listen to me you piece of shit. I have had enough. So there was an accident. Boo Hoo! The whole thing sounds to me like it was your own stupidity that got Maria killed." I kicked him again and he grabbed my leg, Pulling me down to him.

"Don't you say her name." He was trying to take the gun from my hand and I elbowed him as hard as I could in the ribs causing him to falter slightly.

I was able to get to my feet, gun in hand and move away from him across the room. He was slowly getting to his feet and I knew that I had only one option.

"Look at me asshole." I yelled and he brought his eyes to mine a small smile came across his lips. "Game over, you lose." I pulled the trigger and was impressed at first with my aim as the bullet entered right between his eyes. Then the reality hit me and I slumped to the floor. The next thing I knew, the room was really crowded.

Tank and Bobby got to me first. When I saw them standing in front of me, the emotions that I had been trying so hard to hide broke free. Tank ran and got the pillow from my cot and Bobby laid me down on the floor. I looked up to Tank, "He's dead right?"

Tank gave me one of his rare smiles. "Nice shootin ace." Then he stood and looking into my eyes was the most beautiful face in the world.

"Babe." He kissed me and placed a hand on my stomach. "Bobby?" He was trying to get an update, I knew that but I was hoping for more kisses at that moment. Always the professional damn it.

"Here BP is high, but the baby is stable and so is she." With that everyone left to stand around Alverez, leaving Ranger and I alone.

"You figured out my clue?" I felt like I was on a roll; if they were here because of my clue, I would have a hard time deflating my ego for awhile.

"I was very impressed Babe. It took Lester a little while to remember, but once he did, we got here as soon as we could." He looked over to Alverez and then back to me. "I'm proud of you for that too."

"I hope that this will be the only time in my life that I am glad I took someone's life." Saying it hurt my heart. I never thought I would say those words, but Tony had endangered me, the man that I loved and our child. He didn't deserve to be breathing the same air as us.

Ranger bent down and lifted me up. He carried me up the stairs and out of the house. There was a medical transport waiting and I was put on the gurney. We drove away with Bobby and Tank on one side of me, Lester and Ranger on the other.

I looked between them all and my love for each of them was overwhelming. They were my family as much as if we had the same blood running through us.

"You fellas really know how to show a girl a good time, but can we go home now?" Ranger leaned forward and kissed me.

Lester grabbed my hand and laughed lightly, "Party pooper."


	27. Epilogue

I do not own these characters. They belong to Janet Evanovich. Well this is the last chapter. I hope that you all enjoyed the story and weren't too upset by how dark it got. I will be finishing the other two stories I am working on and then have a few more ideas for our favorite residents of Trenton. Thank you all again for all you reviews.

Epilogue

Stephanie's POV

Almost four months had passed since we came back from Mexico. We were in the new Rangeman building and our new home. When we got back, I was taken immediately to the hospital in Trenton and ordered on conditional bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy. I could only be out of bed for a total of two hours a day. I was going nuts.

The mothers came over often, and they had become great friends. This made my life much more difficult that you would think. Now there was a tag team going after me with every step I took. They were constantly trying to get Ranger and me to commit to a date for our wedding. I was perfectly content with waiting, Ranger was, believe it or not, more anxious about it. But I would always tell everyone to back off and not piss off the extremely fragile pregnant lady. I have to admit, I will miss having that excuse when the baby gets here.

So here I was, once again in bed, over eight months pregnant and alone. Ranger had gotten called away to repay a favor to his friend the General. The doctor had assured him that I was not even close to delivering yet, so his weeklong trip would be no problem. Always the man with the plan, Lester had been assigned as my back up birthing coach. He attended Lamaze classes with us and you should have seen the looks we would get. One person even asked if I was Ranger and Lester's surrogate. I laughed so hard that I nearly peed my pants.

Ranger had been gone for three days and I missed him like crazy. He hadn't been away from me for more than twelve hours since we'd been back. This was a necessary trip and I decided to put on my big girl pants and suck it up.

Ella brought me breakfast and after stuffing myself to the gills I lay back to close my eyes for a minute. This was my usual morning routine, but for some reason this morning I was wide awake. I felt like I could run a few miles with the guys. I flipped through the channels, leafed through a magazine. I was bored. I got up to use the bathroom and as I did, a stabbing pain ran through my stomach into my back. I took a few deep breaths and chocked it up to the Braxton Hicks contractions I had been feeling for about two weeks now. All normal and preparing me for the big day my doctor said. The pain passed and I went in, did my business and came back to bed. I sat on the side of the bed and another pain hit me, stronger than the first. I did my hee hee's and my ha ha's, but I suddenly realized that they worked for shit. I felt the need to stand and when I did I was suddenly staring at the floor. My socks were wet and it took a minute for me to realize that my water had just broke.

I very calmly went to the closet, got dressed and went to the bathroom. As I was brushing my hair, another contraction hit and I decided to time them. One more hit while I was putting on my second coat of mascara. Ten minutes apart. Plenty of time according to the books. But with each contraction I was getting more and more anxious to get to the hospital for drugs.

I grabbed my already packed suitcase, which Ella had packed for me about a month ago. I stopped for a second and followed Valerie's advice. She had told me at my shower that before I left for the hospital to take a second to look around my home. Never again would it look or feel as it did then. Now it wasn't that I upset about my son entering the world, but I took a second to mourn the loss of the life that was just Ranger and I. I say second because another contraction hit and it just about knocked me to my knees.

I went to the elevator and pressed the button for five. The control room was still on five. The doors open and Bobby, Tank and Lester were all standing around the monitor bay. Tank saw me first and got a stern look on his face. They were under strict orders to return me to bed if they saw me roaming around.

"Bomber." He was trying to sound tough, but none of them ever achieved the same degree with me that they did with others.

"Guys. I need you to get a hold of Ranger for me and see if he can come back early and then I need a ride to the hospital." I smiled at them weekly as I saw panic creep into their eyes. Just then another contraction hit me and I doubled over. "Shit, shit, shit." I decided that word was going to replace the hee hee's and ha ha's.

Lester ran to me, scooping me up in his arms and Bobby and Tank met us at the elevator. Tank had his phone and was dialing as we got on.

"How far apart are you contractions?" Bobby, always the medic.

"Well they were about ten minutes, but that one seemed quicker." I looked up at Lester, "You can put me down fella. I can walk ya know."

"You're fine right where you are."

Tank sighed, talking into his phone, "Yes I need to speak to Ricardo Manoso. He is with General Franks. It is an emergency." The elevator door signaled our arrival at the garage and I was quickly put into the back seat of one of the SUVs. Bobby drove, Tank in the passenger seat and Lester next to me. Another contraction hit and I squeezed Lester's hand.

"Fuck Steph. Breathe through it." I let go as it subsided and Bobby looked in the mirror.

"Seven minutes."

"Ric. We are on our way to the hospital. Steph is in labor." I looked to Tank and held my hand out for the phone. He just shook his head at me. "Alright. I understand." Then he hung up. I went into full on rhino mode in two seconds. Here I was, having his baby, he didn't even have the decency to marry me and now he won't talk to me on the phone.

"Well." I barked, giving Tank my best Burg glare.

"He will be here as soon as he can." Tank cringed slightly as I am sure he saw my eyes turn red and it had nothing to do with the fact that in a few hours I would be pushing a watermelon out of my vagina.

"Well the next time he calls, you tell him he better show up with a preacher and a license because if he thinks he is going to make me a single mother he has another thing coming." The word came out of my mouth and I realized that I had been burying that fear for a long time.

The men in the car look around to each other quickly as Bobby pulled out of the garage and headed towards the hospital. Not another word was spoken except the swearing from Lester and me as contractions came and went. When we go to the hospital, Lester once again picked me up and carried me through the doors. I was already pre registered, so I was taken immediately up to maternity and given a gown and settled into my room. The nurse came and propped open my door and I could hear three chicken shits arguing outside in the hall. None of them wanted to call Ranger to pass him my message. I felt bad at first and then another contraction hit.

"Get your asses in here." They all ran in the room and Tank and Bobby looked concerned, Lester was trying not to smile. "Is this funny to you Santos. Fine I'll solve your problem you were having out there in the hall. Tank dial Ranger for Lester. He gets to break the happy news to the groom." The contractions were getting stronger and closer together and was in no mood for bullshit.

Tank handed Lester the phone and there was a pause as while he waited for Ranger to answer the phone. "Ric?"

Ranger's POV

I was out the door as soon as I hung up with Tank. The General called ahead for me to have a helicopter waiting to take me back to Trenton at a moment's notice, but I still had to get to the helipad and it was twenty minutes away even without traffic. My phone rang and I answered seeing it was Tank.

"Report."

"Ric?" It was Lester calling on Tank's phone. This was unusual in itself, but the fact that he sounded like he was about ten and had just broken a window playing baseball, almost made me laugh.

"Santos is everything okay?"

"Ric it's fine. I just have a message from Stephanie. She said that she refuses to be an unwed mother and that you had better hurry up and get here with a preacher and a license."

I couldn't help but laugh. For the past three months I had been trying to convince Babe to elope. She kept telling me that it wasn't important to her and she wanted to wait until after the baby was born. "Give Tank the phone back."

There was a scuffle and I heard Steph cussing in the background. "Ric?"

"Tank do whatever you have to to secure a license and get a justice of the peace into the hospital. Call the family and have them come too. I am about two hours out, do I have time?"

"Here, talk to Bomber. I'll get everything taken care of." He passed the phone to Steph.

"Babe?"

"Carlos, I'm sorry. I know you wanted to get married awhile ago, but I realize that it really is important to me. How long until you get here?" She didn't sound anything like the angry woman I had heard in the background not two minutes ago.

"Babe, the General has a helicopter secured for me. I will be there in about two hours. Hold on."

I heard her suck in air and there was a suddenly I heard Lester. "Beautiful let go. Those don't belong to you. SON OF A BITCH." Followed by hysterical laughter from Bobby and Tank.

"You get your ass here Carlos, or so help me God I will castrate you." She then apparently threw the phone across the room and I heard it being picked up.

"Sorry Ric. Contraction. They haven't given her the drugs yet. Actually be glad you aren't here. She just had a death grip on Santos' balls and he's not looking too good." Bobby laughed the words out.

"Take care of her. Get all the arrangements made and I will be there as soon as I can." I hung up and closed my eyes, I could picture the scene there as well as if I was right there.

I arrived in Trenton exactly two hours later and we had permission to land on the hospital's helipad. I ran down the stairs and straight to Steph's room. Bobby and Lester were at the head of her bed. Our mothers were standing beside them. Lula and Tank were huddled in the corner and our fathers were watching the tv hanging from the wall. Suddenly I felt a hand on my ass and I realized that Grandma Mazur was there too. I looked at Tank before crossing to Steph. He nodded and left the room. I took the spot that Bobby was occupying and bent down and kissed her.

"How are you doing?" I was a little tentative and I was being particularly careful to make sure that my crotch was out of reach.

"Better. Drugs are a wonderful thing." She smiled up at me.

"Are you ready to get married?" She looked at me sheepishly and nodded.

Tank brought in the Justice of the Peace and our vows were quickly exchanged. Everyone clapped and as I pulled away from our kiss I smiled at her. "I love you Mrs. Manoso."

"I love you too." She grimaced and I looked at the monitor. A very strong contraction was hitting her and she squeezed my hand. "That one broke through the drugs."

The nurse came in and told everyone to leave. I held my wife's hand as the doctor looked at us and smiled. "Time to push Stephanie."

I supported her head and I watched the mirror that was positioned so we could see our son being born. I was so proud of Babe. It took about thirty minutes of pushing, but suddenly he was there. When we heard him cry, my heart seemed so full.

"Would you like to cut the cord Mr. Manoso?" I took the scissors from her and quickly performed my task. They whisked the baby off and cleaned him up. I stood over them, counting toes and fingers. He was beautiful. He was our miracle. The nurse wrapped him in a blanket and handed him to me. I stared at him for a minute and then walked him over to Babe.

"Ricardo Frank Manoso, I would like you to meet the most amazing woman in the whole world. Luckily for us she is your Mommy and my wife." I kissed his forehead and placed the baby in her arms. "He's perfect Babe."

"Hi Ricky. I love you so much." She cooed and I pulled a chair up so that I could have them both in my arms.

The family made a steady progression through and after awhile all that was left in the room with us were Lester, Bobby, Tank and Lula.

Lester laughed and Steph looked over to him. "What's so funny?" She was smiling, but that strong curiosity of hers never wavered.

"I just had a thought. With all the trouble you get into, you could change your name to Lucy. Then you would be Lucy, Ricky and Little Ricky." Steph chuckled and Lester looked around the room. "Although I must say, Tank and Lula would make one really fucked up Fred and Ethel."

THE END


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